Freemont Management S.A. Acquires 800 Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. $FCNCA

Key Points

• Freemont Management S.A. increased its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 800% in the fourth quarter, ending with 900 shares valued at about $1.93 million. Other institutional investors also made notable changes, and institutions now own 78.01% of the stock.
• CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. bought 5,940 shares on May 12 for roughly $10.26 million, lifting his ownership by 18.46%. Insider buying over the last 90 days totaled 6,198 shares worth about $10.66 million.
• First Citizens BancShares reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, with EPS of $44.86 versus estimates of $43.31, while revenue came in slightly below forecasts. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $2.10 per share, payable June 15, for an annualized yield of about 0.4%.

Freemont Management S.A. grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 800.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 900 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Freemont Management S.A.'s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $1,932,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in First Citizens BancShares by 23.4% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 16,938 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,305,000 after acquiring an additional 3,215 shares in the last quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,270 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 647 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 122.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,440 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,237,000 after buying an additional 1,342 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorShares Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 3rd quarter worth $415,000. 78.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Citizens BancShares news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 5,940 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was bought 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 owned 38,111 shares in the company, valued at $65,810,837.02. This represents a 18.46% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 6,198 shares of company stock worth $10,661,547. 14.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FCNCA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,050.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Zacks Research raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,375.00 to $2,300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $2,202.08.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $1,909.53 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $22.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.98, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.63. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a one year low of $1,623.76 and a one year high of $2,232.21. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,923.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,978.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $44.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $43.31 by $1.55. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 15.62% and a return on equity of 11.48%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $37.79 EPS. Analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 176.04 earnings per share for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio is presently 4.83%.

First Citizens BancShares Profile

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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