First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $2,238.2727.

Several research firms have commented on FCNCA. The Goldman Sachs Group cut First Citizens BancShares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $2,300.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,456.00 to $2,346.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 16th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,600.00 to $2,500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

FCNCA stock opened at $1,856.53 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $2,003.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,945.41. First Citizens BancShares has a 1 year low of $1,473.62 and a 1 year high of $2,232.21. The stock has a market cap of $22.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The bank reported $51.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $44.24 by $7.03. The company had revenue of $2.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 11.18% and a net margin of 15.21%. Equities analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares will post 167.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a dividend of $2.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is 5.07%.

Insider Activity at First Citizens BancShares

In related news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 134 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,550.00 per share, for a total transaction of $207,700.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,260,950. The trade was a 5.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders have bought 258 shares of company stock worth $404,236. Corporate insiders own 13.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 21.7% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 28 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. MBL Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. MBL Wealth LLC now owns 622 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 156 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $305,000 after buying an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC now owns 154 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 40.0% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 21 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.01% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares Company Profile

First Citizens BancShares, Inc is the bank holding company for First Citizens Bank, a full?service commercial bank headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. The company traces its roots to a community bank founded in 1898 and has grown into a diversified financial services organization that operates through its banking subsidiary to serve retail, commercial and institutional clients.

First Citizens offers a broad suite of banking products and services, including consumer and business deposit accounts, commercial and industrial lending, real estate and mortgage lending, treasury and cash management, and specialized lending solutions.