Providence, Rhode Island-based Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (CFG) is a bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations, and institutions. It is valued at a market cap of $27.2 billion.
This bank has considerably outperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks. Shares of CFG have rallied 63.4% over this time frame, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has gained 30.4%. Moreover, on a YTD basis, the stock is up 9.1%, compared to SPX’s 7.9% rise.
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Zooming in further, CFG’s outperformance looks even more pronounced when compared to the State Street SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF’s (KRE) 22.9% uptick over the past 52 weeks and 7.8% return on a YTD basis.
On Apr. 16, shares of CFG dropped 1.2% despite posting stronger-than-expected Q1 results. The company’s revenue rose 12% from the year-ago quarter to $2.2 billion, surpassing analyst estimates, while its EPS of $1.13 exceeded Wall Street expectations by 2.7%. The performance was supported by disciplined loan growth and continued expansion in its private banking business. Although the quarter was seasonally weaker, CFG was still able to deliver year-over-year EPS growth, positive operating leverage, and an improvement in net interest margin.
For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect CFG’s EPS to grow 34.5% year over year to $5.19. The company’s earnings surprise history is promising. It topped the consensus estimates in each of the last four quarters.
Among the 21 analysts covering the stock, the consensus rating is a “Strong Buy,” which is based on 17 “Strong Buy,” two “Moderate Buy,” and two “Hold” ratings.
The configuration is slightly less bullish than a month ago, with 18 analysts suggesting a “Strong Buy” rating.
On May 8, Citigroup Inc. (C) maintained a “Buy” rating on CFG and raised its price target to $75, indicating a 17.7% potential upside from the current levels.
The mean price target of $72.58 suggests a 13.9% premium to its current price levels, while its Street-high price target of $80 implies a 25.5% potential upside.
On the date of publication, Neharika Jain did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com