Covestor Ltd Decreases Stock Position in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Key Points

• Covestor Ltd has reduced its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 53.0%, now holding only 149 shares worth approximately $277,000 as per the latest SEC filing.
• Major shareholder Olivia Britton Holding increased her ownership by purchasing 66 shares at $1,735.00 each, raising her total to 121,926 shares valued at over $211 million.
• First Citizens BancShares reported a stellar quarterly performance with $44.78 earnings per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, alongside a recently announced quarterly dividend of $1.95 per share.

Covestor Ltd lowered its holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 53.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 149 shares of the bank's stock after selling 168 shares during the quarter. Covestor Ltd's holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $277,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 2.3% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 401,167 shares of the bank's stock worth $743,815,000 after acquiring an additional 9,070 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 78.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 172,723 shares of the bank's stock valued at $364,967,000 after purchasing an additional 75,785 shares during the last quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 21.7% in the first quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP now owns 124,773 shares of the bank's stock worth $231,344,000 after acquiring an additional 22,257 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 169,861.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 122,372 shares of the bank's stock worth $226,892,000 after acquiring an additional 122,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 83.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 107,523 shares of the bank's stock worth $227,198,000 after acquiring an additional 48,994 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Olivia Britton Holding acquired 409 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,630.00 per share, with a total value of $666,670.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 1,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,875,320. This represents a 30.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Hope Holding Bryant bought 409 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,630.00 per share, for a total transaction of $666,670.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 1,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,875,320. The trade was a 30.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 1,494 shares of company stock valued at $2,485,986 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 13.19% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on FCNCA. Wall Street Zen downgraded First Citizens BancShares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $2,410.00 price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $2,100.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Barclays reduced their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $2,568.00 to $2,400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $2,150.00 price target on First Citizens BancShares and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $2,291.17.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

NASDAQ FCNCA traded up $20.80 during trading on Monday, hitting $1,848.93. 138,065 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 111,216. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The company has a market cap of $24.57 billion, a PE ratio of 10.91 and a beta of 0.64. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $1,473.62 and a fifty-two week high of $2,412.93. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $1,968.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,918.01.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The bank reported $44.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $39.08 by $5.70. The firm had revenue of $2.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.21 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 11.30% and a net margin of 16.37%. Research analysts expect that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 EPS for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $1.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio is currently 4.60%.

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.