First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Receives $1,667.71 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,774.83.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $1,644.00 to $1,754.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 target price on the stock. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,800.00 price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 15th.

Insider Activity at First Citizens BancShares

In other news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 622 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $1,315.00 per share, with a total value of $817,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 97,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $128,355,835. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other First Citizens BancShares news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 622 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,315.00 per share, with a total value of $817,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 97,609 shares in the company, valued at approximately $128,355,835. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,559.09, for a total value of $935,454.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,549,113.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 1,388 shares of company stock valued at $1,825,220 over the last 90 days. 13.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 3,091.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 23,905 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,203,000 after buying an additional 23,156 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. grew its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 56,803 shares of the bank’s stock worth $80,602,000 after acquiring an additional 5,952 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 49.1% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 47,287 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $65,261,000 after acquiring an additional 15,579 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in First Citizens BancShares by 90.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,132 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,326,000 after purchasing an additional 1,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 262,267 shares of the bank’s stock worth $361,956,000 after purchasing an additional 13,658 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of FCNCA opened at $1,635.00 on Friday. First Citizens BancShares has a 52-week low of $910.25 and a 52-week high of $1,651.73. The stock has a market cap of $23.74 billion, a PE ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $1,529.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,442.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The bank reported $46.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $48.49 by ($1.91). The business had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 51.04%. Research analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares will post 177.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 0.84%.

About First Citizens BancShares

First Citizens BancShares, Inc operates as the holding company for First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses, and professionals. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, money market, and time deposit accounts.