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

Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $2,290.75.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial began coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $2,303.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup lowered First Citizens BancShares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $2,600.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $2,500.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

Shares of First Citizens BancShares stock opened at $2,152.52 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33 and a beta of 0.86. First Citizens BancShares has a 12 month low of $1,363.97 and a 12 month high of $2,388.78. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $2,167.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $2,011.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $47.40 by ($1.53). The business had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.36 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.63% and a net margin of 17.36%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $55.92 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares will post 188.21 earnings per share for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were 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 of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is 4.47%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 3,577.5% in the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 35,010 shares of the bank’s stock worth $58,943,000 after purchasing an additional 34,058 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 323,532 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $595,607,000 after purchasing an additional 33,713 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI lifted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 225.2% during the second quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 42,159 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $70,979,000 after purchasing an additional 29,194 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 183,992.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 23,932 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $440,580,000 after acquiring an additional 23,919 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 6,773.9% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 23,921 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,274,000 after purchasing an additional 23,573 shares during the last quarter. 78.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.