Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Shares Sold by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 17.5% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,079,239 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,287,515 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $272,046,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Investors Research Corp grew its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 344.8% during the 2nd quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 645 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 177.5% in the second quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 641 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 16,900.0% during the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 680 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 676 shares during the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 72.4% during the 2nd quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 736 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of CFG opened at $58.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.60 and a 1-year high of $59.31. The stock has a market cap of $25.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.74. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.36.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The bank reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.02. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.48% and a net margin of 14.17%.The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Citizens Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 29th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 29th. This is an increase from Citizens Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CFG shares. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $57.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Raymond James Financial set a $62.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.71.

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.