Brokerages Set First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Target Price at $2,012.11

Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $2,012.11.

FCNCA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,100.00 to $2,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wedbush cut shares of First Citizens BancShares from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $2,450.00 to $2,150.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

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

First Citizens BancShares Trading Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $2,035.43 on Tuesday. First Citizens BancShares has a 52 week low of $1,290.60 and a 52 week high of $2,174.80. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1,939.42 and a 200 day moving average of $1,800.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 0.81.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $50.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $44.91 by $5.96. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 18.19% and a return on equity of 14.84%. The company had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $52.60 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares will post 200 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $6.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.32%. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is currently 3.64%.

First Citizens BancShares announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 25th that permits the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to buy up to 12.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.