Citi Slumps as CEO Tempers Expectations on Regulatory Penalties

Citigroup Inc. shares slipped as top executives reined in analyst exuberance about the bank racing toward the finish line on key regulatory requirements and reducing its expenses.

After reporting fourth-quarter results that beat analyst estimates, the bank’s shares gradually fell as Chief Executive Jane Fraser and Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason responded to investor questions Wednesday, saying they had trimmed guidance on the firm’s efficiency ratio and expressed caution after one analyst pushed them to suggest Citigroup would shed its regulatory penalties this year.

“I wouldn’t go quite as far as you,” Fraser said in response to a question by ...