First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at UBS Group

UBS Group began coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) in a research report report published on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $2,700.00 target price on the bank’s stock.

FCNCA has been the subject of several other reports. StockNews.com raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,550.00 to $2,300.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered First Citizens BancShares from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $2,100.00 to $2,500.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush dropped their price objective on shares of 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, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,025.00 to $2,625.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $2,243.64.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $2,070.94 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. First Citizens BancShares has a 52-week low of $1,363.97 and a 52-week high of $2,388.78. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $2,122.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,948.22. The company has a market capitalization of $28.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 0.83.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.36 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 17.36% and a return on equity of 13.63%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $55.92 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares will post 187.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were issued 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 was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is presently 4.47%.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCNCA. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in First Citizens BancShares by 0.8% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 607 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,117,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,199 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,019,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 129 shares of the bank’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 6 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV boosted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 459 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $845,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. 78.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.