Here's How Much Investing $1,000 In Citigroup At Great Recession Lows Would Be Worth Today

Despite an extremely volatile, difficult and unpredictable 2020, the S&P 500 has managed to gain significant ground to new all-time highs in 2020. Investors who bought the dip during the sell-off early in the year have been rewarded with a fast market recovery.

Buying the dip was also a great move during the 2008 Great Recession, when the S&P 500 lost roughly 50% of its value, ultimately bottoming at 666.79 on March 9, 2009.

Since the bottom, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY has generated a total return of 553% over the last 11-plus years.

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One market laggard since the financial crisis has been Citigroup Inc C.

Citigroup’s Eventful Decade: All major U.S. banks took a big hit during the financial crisis, but none of the surviving banks were hit harder than Citigroup.

At one point, the U.S. Treasury was forced to take a 36% ownership stake in Citigroup to bail out the bank during the worst of the crisis.

At one point, Citigroup shares dropped as low as 97 cents in early 2009 when investors feared for the bank’s survival. Fortunately for Citigroup investors, the bank survived and its stock limped into 2010 at a price of around $3.40.

In 2010, Citigroup reported a $10.6-billion profit, its first annual profit since 2007. That same year, the government sold its minority stake in Citigroup for a $12-billion profit.

A 1-to-10 reverse stock split in March 2011 boosted the stock’s share price back to above $40, but the stock dropped back to as low as $21.40 during the 2011 Eurozone debt crisis. Citigroup finally got back on track in mid-2012 and has been slowly marching back toward its pre-crisis 2007 highs ever since.

2020 And Beyond: Citigroup shares breached the $80 level in December 2019 and reached a new post-crisis high of $83.11 in early 2020.

The coronavirus sell-off dropped Citigroup shares back down to $32, but they have since recovered to above $43.

Despite a relatively strong recovery since the Great Recession of 2008, Citigroup has never come close to returning to its split-adjusted 2007 pre-crisis highs of around $463.

Still, Citigroup investors who bought on the financial crisis dip have turned a significant profit.

In fact, $1,000 in Citigroup stock bought on the day the S&P 500 bottomed in 2009 would be worth about $4,634 today, assuming reinvested dividends.

Looking ahead, analysts are expecting more gains for Citigroup in the next 12 months. The average price target among the 24 analysts who cover the stock is $61.50, suggesting 41% upside.