Short Interest in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Declines By 21.8%

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,410,000 shares, a decline of 21.8% from the October 15th total of 18,430,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,890,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 0.4 %

CFG stock traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $46.78. The company had a trading volume of 3,793,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,555,918. The company has a market capitalization of $20.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.42, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.07. Citizens Financial Group has a 1 year low of $26.13 and a 1 year high of $48.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.42.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.79. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.94 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 5.73% and a net margin of 10.37%. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 30th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.14%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CFG. Costello Asset Management INC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the second quarter worth $25,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 262.8% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 936 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares during the period. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on CFG shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Barclays raised their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.80.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.