Amalgamated Bank Grows Stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Amalgamated Bank lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 1.4% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 85,948 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,196 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $3,521,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CFG. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 97.1% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 678 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 673.0% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 889 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Citizens National Bank Trust Department boosted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 333.3% in the first quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 1,300 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:CFG opened at $47.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.86 billion, a PE ratio of 15.15, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $41.14 and its 200 day moving average is $42.14. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.60 and a fifty-two week high of $49.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The bank reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.02. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.84% and a net margin of 12.76%. The company had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $45.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays lowered their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $53.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.68.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc operates as the bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, corporations, and institutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking.