Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Shares Bought by Verition Fund Management LLC

Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 874.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 140,229 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 125,832 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $5,759,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CFG. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Citizens Financial Group by 262.8% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 936 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

CFG stock opened at $47.09 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $43.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.34. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.97 and a 52-week high of $49.25. The company has a market capitalization of $20.75 billion, a PE ratio of 18.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 5.73%. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th were paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 30th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $41.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Citizens Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.47.

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.