StockNews.com Downgrades First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) to Sell

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

FCNCA has been the subject of a number of other reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,644.00 to $1,754.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,800.00 price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 price objective for the company. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,774.83.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

NASDAQ FCNCA opened at $1,578.80 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1,547.40 and a 200-day moving average of $1,451.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $22.92 billion, a PE ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.89. First Citizens BancShares has a 52-week low of $945.32 and a 52-week high of $1,651.73.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The bank reported $46.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $48.49 by ($1.91). The company had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 51.04%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares will post 177.52 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Citizens BancShares news, major shareholder Olivia Britton Holding acquired 466 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $1,315.00 per share, for a total transaction of $612,790.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 121,694 shares in the company, valued at approximately $160,027,610. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Olivia Britton Holding bought 466 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,315.00 per share, for a total transaction of $612,790.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 121,694 shares in the company, valued at approximately $160,027,610. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. bought 622 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $1,315.00 per share, with a total value of $817,930.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 97,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $128,355,835. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 1,388 shares of company stock worth $1,825,220. Insiders own 13.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Citizens BancShares

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 3,091.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 23,905 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,203,000 after purchasing an additional 23,156 shares during the period. Reinhart Partners LLC. boosted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 56,803 shares of the bank’s stock worth $80,602,000 after purchasing an additional 5,952 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 49.1% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 47,287 shares of the bank’s stock worth $65,261,000 after purchasing an additional 15,579 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 90.9% during the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 3,132 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,326,000 after purchasing an additional 1,491 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in First Citizens BancShares by 5.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 262,267 shares of the bank’s stock worth $361,956,000 after purchasing an additional 13,658 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

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.