Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Citigroup (NYSE:C) Stock

Citigroup (NYSE:C) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $140.00 to $153.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price points to a potential upside of 21.89% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Citigroup from $131.00 to $135.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Citigroup from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Citigroup from $146.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Citigroup from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Citigroup from $140.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.62.

Citigroup Stock Performance

Shares of C opened at $125.52 on Friday. Citigroup has a 12-month low of $71.29 and a 12-month high of $135.29. The stock has a market cap of $215.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.55, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a 50-day moving average of $117.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.01.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.96 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Citigroup will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that allows the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 13.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Citigroup

In other Citigroup news, insider Cantu Ernesto Torres sold 43,173 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.09, for a total value of $4,796,088.57. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 45,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,091,810.15. This trade represents a 48.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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. This represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 92,318 shares of company stock worth $10,764,814. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Citigroup

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of C. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup in the 4th quarter worth $2,800,944,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Citigroup by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 163,239,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,048,467,000 after acquiring an additional 4,938,923 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Citigroup by 17.6% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 28,125,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,854,788,000 after acquiring an additional 4,211,099 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 47,262,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,797,292,000 after purchasing an additional 2,871,074 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 6,172.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,904,795 shares of the company’s stock worth $294,838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,858,481 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.72% of the company’s stock.

Key Citigroup News

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup unveiled a new $30 billion share buyback plan, a strong signal that management sees the stock as undervalued and has confidence in its capital position. RTT News
• Positive Sentiment: The company set a profitability target of 11% to 13% adjusted return on tangible common equity for 2027-2028, with further improvement expected by 2031, reinforcing the turnaround story. Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target on Citigroup to $153 from $140 and kept an outperform rating, showing Wall Street still sees meaningful upside. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Jane Fraser said the global economy remains resilient, but warned that the market may not yet fully understand the second- and third-order effects of the Iran war and ongoing inflation pressures. YouTube/CNBC
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors viewed the new profit targets as too modest, suggesting Citigroup may still trail peers longer than hoped despite the overhaul. Quartz

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.