Citizens (NYSE:CIA) Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Citizens (NYSE:CIA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Wednesday.

Citizens Stock Up 1.4 %

NYSE:CIA opened at $2.10 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $2.33 and a 200-day moving average of $2.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.10 million, a P/E ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.19. Citizens has a twelve month low of $1.64 and a twelve month high of $3.69.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gerald Shields acquired 16,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was bought at an average price of $2.22 per share, for a total transaction of $35,520.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 168,724 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $374,567.28. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders purchased 24,000 shares of company stock worth $52,287 in the last quarter. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Citizens

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its position in Citizens by 124.1% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 195,439 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 108,226 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in Citizens by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 46,416 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $132,000 after purchasing an additional 4,304 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. acquired a new stake in Citizens in the 3rd quarter valued at $96,000. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Citizens in the 3rd quarter valued at $66,000. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Citizens in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.73% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Company Profile

Citizens, Inc provides life insurance products in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance. The Life Insurance segment issues ordinary whole life insurance and endowment policies in the United States dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S.