Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Holdings Increased by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 36.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 74,600 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,954 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $3,064,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 35.9% during the 1st quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 78,203 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,838,000 after purchasing an additional 20,649 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 101.6% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 761,679 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,641,000 after purchasing an additional 383,947 shares in the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,180,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,965,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $930,000. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Citizens Financial Group news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 3,938 shares of Citizens Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.26, for a total value of $170,357.88. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,454,401.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $41.21 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $18.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.66. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.77 and a 52-week high of $43.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.01). Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 6.21%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. Citizens Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $41.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.07.

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.