We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Credit Card Stocks to Buy Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) stands against the other credit card stocks.

The market for credit card issuance services has expanded significantly over the last several years. At a CAGR of 9.2%, it will grow from $478.09 billion in 2023 to $522.22 billion in 2024, according to the Business Research Company. Over the coming years, a significant expansion in the market size for credit card issuance services is anticipated. At a CAGR of 8.3%, it will increase to $717.7 billion in 2028, as per the research. Contactless payment usage, data security concerns, cryptocurrency emergence, embedded finance, customization, and personalization are all factors contributing to the growth in the projection period.

The credit card market is still changing, mirroring changes in customer preferences and general economic conditions. According to the Q4 2023 Quarterly Credit Industry Insights Report (CIIR), the average credit card debt per borrower at the end of 2023 was $6,360, a 10% rise YoY. This resulted in a total of $1.13 trillion in credit card debt in the United States the same year. Moreover, the average amount owed by households in the 90th percentile is $11,210, with higher-income households often having larger loads.

According to TransUnion, credit card usage continues to rise, with 167.2 million users expected by mid-2023, representing a substantial rise over the last three years. Furthermore, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, credit cards accounted for 31% of all payments in 2022, although less than 10% of Americans typically utilized cash, according to a December 2023 Forbes Advisor survey.

As per the Federal Reserve Board, credit card delinquency rates have been rising gradually and will reach 3.1% by the end of 2023, the highest level since 2011. Additionally, charge-offs rose in Q2 2024 from 4.16% to 4.38%, a record high of 12.5 years that hasn’t been seen since Q4 2011. Meanwhile, according to Forbes Advisor, the average credit card interest rate in March 2024 was 27.89%, putting financial strain on people with balances.

In the future, digital payment methods are expected to gain popularity; according to a survey conducted in August 2023, more than half of customers preferred digital wallets over traditional cards. This change shows that credit card companies will continue to innovate, even as concerns about interest rates and debt levels persist.

Overall, as we have also mentioned in our article, “7 Best American Bank Stocks To Buy According to Hedge Funds,” the U.S. market for digital banking platforms was estimated at $1.04 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 9.63% to reach $2.04 billion by 2031.

Looking forward, according to a report, credit card spending is predicted to increase in the mid-single digits by 2024, while balances will fall to the mid-to-high single digits after a substantial rise since 2022. If labor markets are steady, credit performance measures are expected to decline during 2024 and stabilize by early 2025. Despite lower inflation, key problems include resumed student debt payments, high interest rates, and growing living costs.

Yanni Koulouriotis, CFA, Vice President – Global FIG stated:

“Overall, DBRS Morningstar expects a less favorable operating environment for credit card issuers in 2024 as consumer dynamics shift and are less of tailwind to credit card issuer performance. While we expect weaker financial performance in 2024 compared to 2023, we still expect performance to be supportive of current credit ratings.”

Methodology:

We sifted through holdings of credit card ETFs and online rankings to form an initial list of 20 credit card stocks. Then we selected the 10 stocks that were the most popular among institutional investors. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of the number of hedge funds that have stakes in them, as of Q2 2024. We have used the stock’s market cap as a tie-breaker in case two or more stocks have the same number of hedge funds invested.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points. (see more details here)

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)

Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 85

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C), the third-biggest U.S. lender, was founded in 1812 and is headquartered in New York. The company provides a range of financial services and products, such as credit cards with different features, loyalty programs, and benefits. Corporate/Other, Institutional Clients Group, and Global Consumer Banking are the segments through which it conducts business.

The US credit card and consumer banking divisions of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) saw a 74% decline in profits from the previous year. Much of the increase in delinquent credit card borrowers drove the bank’s credit losses in those businesses, which increased to $2.3 billion in the Q2 2024 quarter from $1.5 billion the previous year. Revenue from credit cards issued on behalf of stores like Costco or Home Depot fell to 6% year over year. Nonetheless, the company is one of the key market players in the credit card market.

Given its obvious global presence, C’s most distinctive business is its commercial banking division. The banking company’s wide global reach has helped it to retain its reputation as the preferred bank for firms operating internationally.

The financial services multinational corporation is currently going through a strategic realignment because of its intricate global operations, which have made it challenging for the company to stay competitive. This entails taking important steps like reinvesting in wealth and commercial banking and restructuring its consumer operation in Mexico. It’s possible that the company may finally become structurally stronger.

Diamond Hill Capital Long-Short Fund stated the following regarding Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) in its first quarter 2024 investor letter:

“Other top Q1 contributors included Meta Platforms, Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) and Walt Disney. Banking and financial services company Citigroup’s restructuring efforts are ongoing, and it continues remediating regulatory issues and building capital in anticipation of increased requirements. The company expects to see expenses fall meaningfully in the second half of 2024, bolstering the outlook from here.”

The three most important aspects of Citi are its capitalization, burden, and solvency in relation to other banks. The financial company’s short-term performance may be impacted by high investment costs and ongoing regulatory scrutiny, but the company’s strategic exits and efficiency improvements are meant to boost future profitability.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway is the largest shareholder in the company, with 55,244,797 shares worth $3.51 billion.

Overall C ranks 5th on our list of the best credit card stocks to buy. While we acknowledge the potential of C as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than C but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

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