Van ECK Associates Corp Cuts Stock Holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Van ECK Associates Corp reduced its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 11.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,969 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 761 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CFG. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 262.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 936 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the period. Private Ocean LLC raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 484.4% during the 2nd quarter. Private Ocean LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 838 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 183.1% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,104 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 714 shares during the period. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 3,938 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.26, for a total transaction of $170,357.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,454,401.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CFG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday, July 11th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $41.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.20.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 1.9 %

CFG stock opened at $41.45 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $40.40 and a 200 day moving average of $36.60. The firm has a market cap of $18.58 billion, a PE ratio of 15.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.08. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.77 and a twelve month high of $43.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 6.21%. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.05%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.87%.

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.