First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Position Lowered by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund lowered its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,931 shares of the bank's stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund's holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $10,997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 54.5% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 17 shares of the bank's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the first quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the first quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 263.6% in the first quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 40 shares of the bank's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Citizens BancShares

In other news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 350 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,610.00 per share, for a total transaction of $563,500.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,758 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,440,380. This represents a 14.53% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 13.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered First Citizens BancShares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "hold" rating and a $2,050.00 price target for the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $1,900.00 to $2,050.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,100.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,568.00 to $2,400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Citizens BancShares presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $2,299.50.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA traded up $9.79 during trading on Friday, hitting $2,123.59. 59,266 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 89,095. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,936.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,938.43. The company has a market cap of $28.22 billion, a PE ratio of 12.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $1,473.62 and a 12-month high of $2,412.93.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $37.79 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $37.72 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.22 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 11.98% and a net margin of 17.10%. On average, analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 EPS for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a dividend of $1.95 per share. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio is presently 4.47%.

First Citizens BancShares Profile

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.