First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Shares Sold by Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning

Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning decreased its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) by 34.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 239 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 124 shares during the quarter. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning’s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $391,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,017,655 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,444,022,000 after buying an additional 6,906 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 5.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 262,267 shares of the bank’s stock worth $361,956,000 after buying an additional 13,658 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 239,563 shares of the bank’s stock worth $339,933,000 after buying an additional 41,793 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 186,822 shares of the bank’s stock worth $265,120,000 after buying an additional 534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the fourth quarter worth $180,039,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on FCNCA. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 in a research note on Friday, April 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,900.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,842.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 516 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,750.00, for a total value of $903,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,433,250. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 484 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,750.12, for a total value of $847,058.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 335 shares in the company, valued at approximately $586,290.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 516 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,750.00, for a total transaction of $903,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,433,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,273,568 in the last ninety days. 12.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $1,716.10 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.93 billion, a PE ratio of 9.53 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $1,241.05 and a twelve month high of $1,810.03. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,706.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,579.99.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $52.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $44.27 by $8.65. The business had revenue of $2.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 18.22% and a return on equity of 15.48%. On average, equities analysts predict that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 190.55 EPS 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 issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.38%. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is 3.64%.

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.