Citigroup Inc. $C is Alden Global Capital LLC’s 2nd Largest Position

Alden Global Capital LLC cut its position in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) by 32.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 203,511 shares of the company’s stock after selling 97,986 shares during the quarter. Citigroup makes up 11.2% of Alden Global Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Alden Global Capital LLC’s holdings in Citigroup were worth $23,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in Citigroup by 92.2% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Luken Investment Analytics LLC purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. High Note Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Citigroup by 107.7% in the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citigroup News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Trading activity showed unusually strong demand for Citigroup call options, suggesting investors are positioning for further upside in the stock.
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup’s May consumer credit data was mixed but not alarming overall: card delinquencies declined, which may support the view that credit quality remains manageable. Article: Citigroup’s Card Delinquencies Decline, Charge-Offs Rise in May
• Positive Sentiment: The stock is still benefiting from recent momentum tied to strong earnings, restructuring progress, AI-related initiatives and share buybacks, which have helped push shares toward multi-year highs. Article: Citigroup Stock at Multi-Year High: Why Investors Should Stay Invested
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also a report that Citigroup had recently gone long on a more constructive market view via an economist’s call for Fed rate cuts, but this is more macro commentary than a direct company catalyst. Article: Citi chief US economist defends unpopular Fed rate-cut call
• Negative Sentiment: Two lawsuits tied to a former executive’s allegations over Trump-related client concerns and retaliation could create legal and reputational risk for Citigroup if the claims gain traction. Article: Citigroup faces lawsuit over alleged Trump-linked account issues

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 182,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,919,511.02. The trade was a 12.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total transaction of $265,260.10. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,527,908.20. The trade was a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Citigroup Price Performance

C opened at $143.74 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $128.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.04. Citigroup Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.26 and a 52-week high of $146.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a market cap of $245.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.12.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. Citigroup had a net margin of 9.35% and a return on equity of 9.19%. The business had revenue of $24.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Citigroup declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 7th that permits the company to buyback $30.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Citigroup Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 4th. Citigroup’s payout ratio is presently 29.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

C has been the subject of several research reports. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $146.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.79.

Citigroup 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.