Sterne Agee Gives Buy Rating to CIT Group, $50 PT

Earlier today, Sterne Agee issued a report in which it gave a Buy rating to CIT Group, Inc. CIT, and set a price target of $50. In the report, Sterne Agee went on to say, “We expect [CIT Group] to begin buying in stock in 2013 and look for it to reduce its TCE ratio to 13-15% over a two- to three-year cycle. This should result, by our reckoning, in the company generating 2014 GAAP EPS of $5.30 to $5.85, fully taxed EPS of ~$4.60, and under the umbrella of a larger bank, a level of earnings equivalent to fully taxed EPS of $6.00.” CIT Group, Inc. closed yesterday at $41.33.