JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reduces Holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. $FCNCA

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase cut its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 18.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 81,050 shares and leaving it with 354,228 shares valued at about $760.2 million.
• Despite the sale, institutional ownership remains high: hedge funds and other institutions own about 78.01% of the bank, and several other investors also recently increased or adjusted their positions.
• First Citizens BancShares reported strong quarterly earnings of $44.86 per share, beating estimates, and also announced a quarterly dividend of $2.10 per share payable on June 15.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 18.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 354,228 shares of the bank's stock after selling 81,050 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 2.85% of First Citizens BancShares worth $760,238,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hiddenite Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the 4th quarter worth $6,868,000. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 23.4% during the 3rd 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. Check Capital Management Inc. CA grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. Check Capital Management Inc. CA now owns 42,788 shares of the bank's stock worth $91,831,000 after acquiring an additional 7,424 shares in the last quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 1,270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barr E S & Co. grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 33.2% during the 4th quarter. Barr E S & Co. now owns 5,995 shares of the bank's stock worth $12,866,000 after acquiring an additional 1,495 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at First Citizens BancShares

In other First Citizens BancShares news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. purchased 5,940 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,726.82 per share, with a total value of $10,257,310.80. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 38,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,810,837.02. This represents a 18.46% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 7,437 shares of company stock valued at $12,956,718. Insiders own 14.63% of the company's stock.

First Citizens BancShares Trading Up 1.3%

NASDAQ FCNCA opened at $2,100.68 on Wednesday. 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 50-day simple moving average of $1,974.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2,003.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 12.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.62.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 15.62% and a return on equity of 11.48%. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $37.79 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 177.84 earnings per share for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $8.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. First Citizens BancShares's payout ratio is 4.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on FCNCA shares. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,500.00 to $2,300.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Piper Sandler set a $2,050.00 price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,200.00 to $2,150.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. 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. Finally, Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Friday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Citizens BancShares currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $2,215.91.

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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