Maltese Capital Management LLC Sells 27,116 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Maltese Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 22.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 95,000 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 27,116 shares during the period. Maltese Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $5,549,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CFG. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $39,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 632.0% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 710 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2,703.0% during the 2nd quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 925 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 892 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $66.69 on Tuesday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $40.25 and a 52 week high of $68.79. The company has a market capitalization of $28.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $63.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.77 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CFG shares. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Stephens began coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Monday. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $68.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total value of $376,068.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,402,640.40. The trade was a 21.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc (NYSE: CFG) is a bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses, corporations and institutional clients. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens conducts its banking operations principally through its primary banking subsidiary, Citizens Bank, and serves customers through a combination of branch locations, ATMs and digital channels. The company is publicly traded and operates under the regulatory framework applicable to U.S.