First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Thursday.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,550.00 to $2,300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,100.00 to $2,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $2,150.00 to $2,000.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $2,025.90.

First Citizens BancShares Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $2,200.46 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 0.80. First Citizens BancShares has a 1-year low of $1,363.97 and a 1-year high of $2,275.90. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $1,973.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,872.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $47.40 by ($1.53). First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 17.36%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $55.92 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares will post 189.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.95 per share. This is a positive change from First Citizens BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is 3.76%.

First Citizens BancShares announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 12.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FCNCA. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 0.8% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 607 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,117,000 after buying an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 19.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,195 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,246,000 after acquiring an additional 1,158 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 6.7% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,856 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,258,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the third quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC increased its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 4.0% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 1,297 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,388,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

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.