Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Decreases Stock Position in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. $FCNCA

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 7.2%, selling 9,516 shares to hold 123,569 shares (about 0.96% of the company) valued at $221.1 million at quarter‑end.
• First Citizens beat expectations with Q results of $51.27 EPS versus $44.24 expected and $2.44B revenue versus $2.24B expected, and announced a $2.10 quarterly dividend ($8.40 annualized) payable March 16 (ex‑dividend Feb 27), ~0.4% yield.
• Institutional ownership stands around 78%, analysts give a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $2,238.27, and the stock trades with a market cap of about $22.6 billion and a P/E of 11.42.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP decreased its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 7.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 123,569 shares of the bank's stock after selling 9,516 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.96% of First Citizens BancShares worth $221,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 23.4% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 16,938 shares of the bank's stock valued at $30,305,000 after acquiring an additional 3,215 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 577.7% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 759 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,358,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares during the period. Founders Financial Alliance LLC increased its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 484.7% during the 3rd quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 1,532 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,742,000 after purchasing an additional 1,270 shares during the period. AdvisorShares Investments LLC bought a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the 3rd quarter valued at $415,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 43,787 shares of the bank's stock worth $78,341,000 after buying an additional 3,587 shares during the period. 78.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

FCNCA stock opened at $1,892.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $2,078.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,957.88. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a one year low of $1,473.62 and a one year high of $2,232.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 23rd. The bank reported $51.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $44.24 by $7.03. The firm had revenue of $2.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 15.21% and a return on equity of 11.18%. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. First Citizens BancShares's payout ratio is currently 5.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FCNCA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,000.00 to $2,100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,456.00 to $2,346.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 26th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,600.00 to $2,500.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $2,100.00 to $2,200.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,238.27.

About First Citizens BancShares

First Citizens BancShares, Inc is the bank holding company for First Citizens Bank, a full‑service commercial bank headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. The company traces its roots to a community bank founded in 1898 and has grown into a diversified financial services organization that operates through its banking subsidiary to serve retail, commercial and institutional clients.

First Citizens offers a broad suite of banking products and services, including consumer and business deposit accounts, commercial and industrial lending, real estate and mortgage lending, treasury and cash management, and specialized lending solutions.

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