First Citizens BancShares, Inc. $FCNCA Shares Bought by Swedbank AB

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 61% in the fourth quarter, buying 1,671 additional shares and bringing its total to 4,410 shares valued at about $9.47 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious: several firms recently lowered or maintained ratings, and the stock’s consensus view is Hold with an average price target of $2,215.91.
• The bank beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $44.86 per share versus the expected $43.31, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $2.10 per share payable June 15.

Swedbank AB raised its stake in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 61.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,410 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 1,671 shares during the period. Swedbank AB's holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $9,465,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 16 shares of the bank's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 150.0% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 15 shares of the bank's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 280.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 19 shares of the bank's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FCNCA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded First Citizens BancShares from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler set a $2,050.00 price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,200.00 to $2,150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of First Citizens BancShares from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $2,154.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Citizens BancShares has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $2,215.91.

First Citizens BancShares Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $1,996.92 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $1,936.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,989.55. The company has a market capitalization of $23.14 billion, a PE ratio of 11.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $1,623.76 and a 52-week high of $2,232.21.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $44.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $43.31 by $1.55. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 11.48% and a net margin of 15.62%.During the same quarter last year, the business posted $37.79 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 177.84 EPS for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $2.10 per share. This represents a $8.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.83%.

Insider Transactions at First Citizens BancShares

In other news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. purchased 5,940 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $1,726.82 per share, for a total transaction of $10,257,310.80. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 38,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at $65,810,837.02. This represents a 18.46% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 6,198 shares of company stock worth $10,661,547. Company insiders own 14.63% of the company's stock.

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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