Meeder Asset Management Inc. Buys 140 Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) by 4,666.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 143 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $263,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in First Citizens BancShares in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 2nd quarter valued at $52,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised 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 worth $108,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 129.6% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 62 shares of the bank’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 61.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays increased their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,550.00 to $2,300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Wedbush cut their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,150.00 to $2,000.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a 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. According to data from MarketBeat, First Citizens BancShares currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $2,025.90.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $2,217.73 on Wednesday. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $1,363.97 and a 12-month high of $2,275.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,986.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,880.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $47.40 by ($1.53). The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion for 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 period last year, the company posted $55.92 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 189.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $1.95 per share. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. This is an increase from First Citizens BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 3.76%.

First Citizens BancShares declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 25th that allows the company to buyback $3.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to purchase up to 12.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is 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.