First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Rating Lowered to Neutral at Wedbush

Wedbush cut shares of First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) from an outperform rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Wedbush currently has $2,150.00 target price on the bank’s stock, down from their prior target price of $2,450.00. Wedbush also issued estimates for First Citizens BancShares’ Q3 2024 earnings at $48.03 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $47.86 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $199.68 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $46.13 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $47.58 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $50.40 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $50.90 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $49.57 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $53.75 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $220.00 EPS.

FCNCA has been the subject of a number of other reports. Raymond James upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $1,900.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays raised their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued a buy rating and a $2,005.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $1,962.90.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $1,845.53 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $1,954.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,770.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72. The company has a market capitalization of $26.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.25 and a beta of 0.82. First Citizens BancShares has a 12-month low of $1,274.91 and a 12-month high of $2,174.80.

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

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is 3.64%.

First Citizens BancShares announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to buyback $3.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to reacquire up to 12.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Citizens BancShares

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in First Citizens BancShares during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in First Citizens BancShares during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in First Citizens BancShares during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in First Citizens BancShares during the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in First Citizens BancShares during the first quarter worth approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

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.