First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the ten ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,836.00.

Several brokerages have recently commented on FCNCA. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,650.00 price objective (up from $1,600.00) on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Barclays boosted their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Piper Sandler downgraded First Citizens BancShares from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 in a research report on Friday, April 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $2,100.00 target price (up from $1,900.00) on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Friday, April 26th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,766.24, for a total transaction of $1,766,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,124,170.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,750.12, for a total value of $847,058.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 335 shares in the company, valued at $586,290.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,766.24, for a total value of $1,766,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,124,170.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,273,568. 13.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FCNCA. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 20 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

Shares of First Citizens BancShares stock opened at $1,683.61 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,701.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,574.41. First Citizens BancShares has a 52 week low of $1,232.00 and a 52 week high of $1,810.03. The company has a market capitalization of $24.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.35 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $52.92 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $44.27 by $8.65. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 15.48% and a net margin of 18.22%. The business had revenue of $2.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. As a group, analysts expect that First Citizens BancShares will post 188.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.39%. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is 3.64%.

First Citizens BancShares Company Profile

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.