Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Lowers Position in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP trimmed its holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) by 84.6% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,016 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 27,598 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $9,234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FCNCA. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in First Citizens BancShares in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new position in First Citizens BancShares in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $52,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 120.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 66 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 129.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 62 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 61.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FCNCA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Wedbush lowered their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,150.00 to $2,000.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $2,025.90.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $2,353.08 on Monday. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $1,363.97 and a 52 week high of $2,363.90. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $2,016.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,893.32. The stock has a market cap of $32.92 billion, a PE ratio of 13.48 and a beta of 0.80.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $47.40 by ($1.53). The company 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 period last year, the firm posted $55.92 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 187.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $1.95 dividend. This is an increase from First Citizens BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is presently 3.76%.

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.