Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,586 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $5,464,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCNCA. Holderness Investments Co. lifted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Holderness Investments Co. now owns 638 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,348,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 5,978 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,632,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 1,119 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,364,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in First Citizens BancShares by 68.7% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 1,044 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,206,000 after buying an additional 425 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 46.5% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 35,962 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $75,997,000 after buying an additional 11,408 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FCNCA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $2,600.00 price target on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $2,456.00 to $2,568.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $2,700.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup cut First Citizens BancShares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $2,250.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $2,288.08.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

Shares of FCNCA stock opened at $1,851.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.81. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a one year low of $1,518.00 and a one year high of $2,412.93. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $2,052.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $2,054.85.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The bank reported $45.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.32 by $5.78. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.22% and a net margin of 18.55%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 EPS for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $1.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. First Citizens BancShares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.12%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Craig L. Nix purchased 17 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $1,881.13 per share, for a total transaction of $31,979.21. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 1,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,146,369.33. This trade represents a 1.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 13.40% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares 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.