Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) had its price target lifted by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $68.00 to $68.50 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the bank’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price points to a potential upside of 6.28% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. New Street Research set a $73.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Robert W. Baird upgraded Citizens Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.88.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of CFG stock opened at $64.45 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.24, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.70. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Citizens Financial Group has a one year low of $37.88 and a one year high of $68.79.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.03. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The firm had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.77 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the transaction, the insider owned 165,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,632,956.84. This represents a 7.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $355,909,000. Ninety One UK Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the third quarter worth approximately $308,946,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 56.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,722,559 shares of the bank’s stock worth $451,075,000 after purchasing an additional 2,799,050 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 89.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,731,592 shares of the bank’s stock worth $276,372,000 after purchasing an additional 2,232,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 136.4% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 3,513,388 shares of the bank’s stock worth $205,217,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,255 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Citizens Financial Group

Citizens Financial Group, Inc (NYSE: CFG) is a bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses, corporations and institutional clients. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens conducts its banking operations principally through its primary banking subsidiary, Citizens Bank, and serves customers through a combination of branch locations, ATMs and digital channels. The company is publicly traded and operates under the regulatory framework applicable to U.S.