Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $46.27.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CFG shares. StockNews.com raised Citizens Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $47.03 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.49. The company has a market cap of $20.73 billion, a PE ratio of 18.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.08. Citizens Financial Group has a one year low of $28.77 and a one year high of $49.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.79. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.94 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 10.37% and a return on equity of 5.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.2 EPS 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 30th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 30th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 66.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Commerce Bank increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 1.9% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 13,177 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $541,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 12.7% in the 2nd quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 2,344 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 2.5% during the third quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 11,395 shares of the bank’s stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 0.3% during the third quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 88,829 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,648,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SYM FINANCIAL Corp boosted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 4.8% during the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 6,976 shares of the bank’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.