Citigroup (C) Benefited from a Strategy Transformation

Hardman Johnston Global Advisors, an investment management company, released its “Hardman Johnston Global Equity Strategy” investor letter for the fourth quarter of 2025. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Global equity markets delivered robust results in the quarter, backed by easing inflation trends and strong economic data. The Hardman Johnston Global Equity Strategy returned 2.91%, net of fees, compared to the MSCI AC World Net Index’s 3.29% gain. The Financials and Consumer Staples sectors contributed to the performance, while the Industrials and Consumer Discretionary sectors detracted from relative performance. In addition, please check the Strategy’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2025.

In its fourth-quarter 2025 investor letter, Hardman Johnston Global Equity Strategy highlighted Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) as one of its leading contributors. Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) is a diversified financial services holding company. The one-month return of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) was -1.63%, and its shares gained 42.37% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On January 27, 2026, Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) stock closed at $114.79 per share, with a market capitalization of $205.39 billion.

Hardman Johnston Global Equity Strategy stated the following regarding Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) in its fourth quarter 2025 investor letter:

"From a sector standpoint, the main contributors to relative performance during the fourth quarter were Financials and Consumer Staples. Within Financials, Standard Chartered PLC and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) were the strongest outperformers. Citigroup Inc.’s ongoing transformation strategy is paying off as the company allocates more capital to higher return businesses and is diligent on cost discipline. Investment Banking fee revenue was strong, reflecting improved deal activity and market share gains. In addition, market and trading results have been very strong as markets and volatility have increased. Lastly, the bank is benefiting from a better regulatory environment, lowering costs which is expected to keep improving in 2026. All these positives are benefiting Citi even as it trades among the lowest valuations among big banks. This should lead to multiple expansion as the company delivers double-digit earnings growth over the coming year."

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. According to our database, 107 hedge fund portfolios held Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) at the end of the third quarter, up from 102 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

In another article, we covered Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) and shared the list of best financial stocks to buy according to Billionaire Israel Englander. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q4 2025 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.