First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Short Interest Up 6.6% in August

First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 230,500 shares, an increase of 6.6% from the August 15th total of 216,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 87,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ FCNCA opened at $1,898.95 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1,941.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,755.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.59 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 0.82. First Citizens BancShares has a fifty-two week low of $1,274.91 and a fifty-two week high of $2,174.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $50.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $44.91 by $5.96. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 14.84% and a net margin of 18.19%. The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $52.60 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that First Citizens BancShares will post 200.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were given a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on FCNCA. Raymond James upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,900.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,100.00 to $2,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $2,005.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,920.82.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FCNCA. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 21.6% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 29,077 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $47,866,000 after buying an additional 5,172 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $180,039,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in First Citizens BancShares by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,492 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,709,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 2,583.3% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 805 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,316,000 after acquiring an additional 775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the fourth quarter worth $2,376,000. 61.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.