Citizens Financial Group management check
CFG · Financials · Regional Banks · CEO Saun Bruce Van
Filings as of
6 good · 1 to watch · 0 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $202, against $196 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.86 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.7% of net income$12.5m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $1.8bn of net income.
- Watch
Do they own the stock?
CEO stake ≈ 6.6 years of payThe CEO holds 1,140,763 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 6.6 years of pay. 2 insiders sold $9.7m in the last six months and none bought.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -4.3% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 7.3% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
9 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Mr. Van Saun. 9 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Financials.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 54 | 49 | |
| Pay for performance | 93 | 83 | |
| CEO cost | 64 | 67 | |
| Skin in the game | 56 | 51 | |
| Dilution | 100 | 69 | |
| Stable leadership | 80 | 80 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Regional Banks, by management score. Citizens Financial Group is 20th of 72 in its sector.
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed March 9, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mr. Van Saun | $12.5m | $22.0m | $3.9m | $202 | $196 | $1.8bn |
| 2024 | — | $10.6m | $14.6m | $9.3m | $146 | $148 | $1.5bn |
| 2023 | — | $11.1m | $8.6m | $3.7m | $106 | $108 | $1.6bn |
| 2022 | — | $11.7m | $10.1m | $3.6m | $119 | $109 | $2.1bn |
| 2021 | — | $12.4m | $19.4m | $3.7m | $137 | $138 | $2.3bn |
The board says pay is tied most to Underlying ROTCE. Its other key measures: Underlying Earnings per Share, Underlying Efficiency Ratio.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Saun Bruce Van (Chairman and CEO) held 1,140,763 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Jul 24, 2026, roughly $82.2m at that filing's price.
2 insiders sold $9.7m in the last six months and none bought.
- SoldSaun Bruce VanChairman and CEO$9.3mJul 24, 2026
- SoldMichelle MoosallyChief Legal Officer$376kMay 12, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Oct 7, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Aug 12, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 30, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 20, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 16, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 14, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 12, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 26, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 16, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 12, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 7, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Apr 24, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $6.8bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 73% of net income, and $447.0m of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.3bn | $1.3bn | $1.3bn | $1.5bn | $1.6bn |
| Net income | $2.3bn | $2.1bn | $1.6bn | $1.5bn | $1.8bn |
| Stock-based pay | $59.0m | $84.0m | $87.0m | $97.0m | $120.0m |
| Buybacks | $295.0m | $153.0m | $906.0m | $1.1bn | $600.0m |
| Dividends | $670.0m | $779.0m | $808.0m | $769.0m | $755.0m |
| Diluted shares | 427m | 478m | 477m | 454m | 437m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.