The U.S. Department of Treasury sold a 5% stake in Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) for $5.9 billion during the last nine weeks, bringing a profit for taxpayers despite the bank’s share price falling during the period.
The government sold 1.5 billion shares of the New York-based bank since July 26th, the department said in a statement. The government received an average share price of $3.93, making a profit on the $3.25 per share that it paid for a stake in the bank during the financial crisis in 2008. The government made a profit of $1.02 billion from the sales, which were managed by Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS).
The Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) stake owned by the Treasury fell to 3.6 billion shares, or about 12% of the outstanding shares in Citi. The government still owns about $14 billion worth of Citigroup stock, which it received from a $45 billion bailout in Citigroup in 2008. Citi repaid $20 billion of those funds and the Treasury Department converted remaining shares into a 27% stake in the company.
Citigroup Inc. (Citigroup) is a global diversified financial services holding company. The Company provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a range of financial products and services. As of December 31, 2009, Citigroup had approximately 200 million customer accounts and did business in more than 140 countries. Citigroup operates through two primary business segments: Citicorp, consisting of its Regional Consumer Banking (RCB) businesses and Institutional Clients Group (ICG), and Citi Holdings, consisting of its Brokerage and Asset Management (BAM), Local Consumer Lending (LCL), and Special Asset Pool (SAP). In April 2010, Barclays PLC acquired Italian credit card business of Citibank International Bank plc. In May 2010, the Company announced the creation of a new Collateral Management Services unit within its Securities and Fund Services business.
Shares of Citigroup, Inc (NYSE: C) traded down 0.26% during mid-day trading on Thursday.
