First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $1.53 EPS

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The bank reported $45.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $47.40 by ($1.53), RTT News reports. The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 14.84% and a net margin of 18.19%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $55.92 EPS.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

FCNCA stock opened at $1,881.83 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $27.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.81. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,948.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,825.89. First Citizens BancShares has a 1-year low of $1,339.10 and a 1-year high of $2,174.80.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $1.95 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.41%. This is a boost from First Citizens BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio is 3.61%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $2,005.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price 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. StockNews.com lowered shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective 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, Piper Sandler raised their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2,025.90.

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.