D Orazio & Associates Inc. Raises Stock Position in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)

D Orazio & Associates Inc. grew its stake in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,501 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 410 shares during the period. D Orazio & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Citigroup were worth $387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of C. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Citigroup during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Citigroup in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Webster Bank N. A. increased its stake in shares of Citigroup by 150.0% during the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Citigroup by 184.0% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 568 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its position in shares of Citigroup by 69.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 635 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Citigroup Price Performance

C stock opened at $81.73 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $74.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.14. The company has a market cap of $154.57 billion, a PE ratio of 13.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Citigroup Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.24 and a 12-month high of $82.91.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.12. Citigroup had a net margin of 7.43% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The firm had revenue of $19.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.84 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Citigroup Inc. will post 7.51 EPS for the current year.

Citigroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 15th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 13.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on C shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Citigroup from $77.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Citigroup from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Citigroup from $104.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $110.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Citigroup from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Citigroup has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.93.

About Citigroup

Citigroup Inc, a diversified financial service holding company, provides various financial product and services to consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide. It operates through five segments: Services, Markets, Banking, U.S. Personal Banking, and Wealth. The Services segment includes Treasury and Trade Solutions, which provides cash management, trade, and working capital solutions to multinational corporations, financial institutions, and public sector organizations; and Securities Services, such as cross-border support for clients, local market expertise, post-trade technologies, data solutions, and various securities services solutions.