Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $124.6471.

C has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $150.00 target price on Citigroup in a report on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $141.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Citigroup from $141.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday.

Key Stories Impacting Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat and dealmaking strength — Citi reported $1.81 EPS vs. $1.65 expected and management highlighted a rebound in investment banking and corporate client fees, which supports earnings momentum and valuation re-ratings. Citigroup profit beats estimates as dealmaking rebounds
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support and price-target lifts — Several firms refreshed views after the quarter (Wolfe Research cited constructive subsector outlook; RBC reaffirmed an outperform). That analyst activity can provide near-term buy-side support. Wolfe Research Raises Citigroup PT RBC Reaffirms Outperform (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual options activity — Large call buying was observed (≈108,979 calls, ~34% above average). That’s a bullish short-term signal but could reflect hedging or speculative flow rather than firm fundamental conviction.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue miss and one‑time Russia loss — Revenue missed Street estimates and reported profit was pulled down by a Russia‑unit sale; the WSJ noted the profit drop tied to that divestiture, which tempers the headline EPS beat. Citigroup’s Fourth Quarter Profit Drops After Russia Sale (WSJ)
• Negative Sentiment: Cost cuts and restructuring risk — CEO Jane Fraser signaled more job cuts and the firm is executing layoffs (1,000 announced this week; a broader plan targets many more), which could weigh on near‑term morale, execution risk and transition costs. Citigroup CEO Signals More Job Cuts (TipRanks)
• Negative Sentiment: Credit-card exposure and regulatory/sector headwinds — Commentaries flagged Citi’s consumer/credit-card exposures as a vulnerability and the broader bank sector saw selling after earnings amid valuation scrutiny and political talk of credit-rate caps, creating an ongoing overhang. Record earnings overshadowed by credit-card exposure (TipRanks) Bank Stocks Get Punished After Earnings (MarketBeat)

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citigroup

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Citigroup by 31.5% during the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 75,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,705,000 after purchasing an additional 18,176 shares in the last quarter. Permanent Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Citigroup in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,238,000. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Citigroup by 27.2% during the 3rd quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 75,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,670,000 after buying an additional 16,171 shares during the period. Keystone Financial Services bought a new position in Citigroup in the second quarter worth approximately $216,000. Finally, Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. boosted its holdings in Citigroup by 61.5% in the third quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 57,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,789,000 after acquiring an additional 21,720 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the company’s stock.

Citigroup Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Citigroup stock opened at $118.21 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $110.67 and a 200-day moving average of $101.27. Citigroup has a 52-week low of $55.51 and a 52-week high of $124.17. The stock has a market cap of $211.51 billion, a PE ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.18.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $19.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.99 billion. Citigroup had a net margin of 8.50% and a return on equity of 8.28%. Citigroup’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.34 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Citigroup will post 7.53 EPS for the current year.

Citigroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Citigroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.43%.

Citigroup Company Profile

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi’s principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.