Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Has $10.06 Million Stock Holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lessened its stake in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 11.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,760 shares of the bank's stock after selling 606 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc's holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $10,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of FCNCA. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in First Citizens BancShares by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 3,031 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,404,000 after buying an additional 1,244 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 6.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 288,960 shares of the bank's stock valued at $531,961,000 after purchasing an additional 18,501 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the fourth quarter valued at $39,739,000. Check Capital Management Inc. CA increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Check Capital Management Inc. CA now owns 33,599 shares of the bank's stock valued at $70,995,000 after purchasing an additional 5,605 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 3,663 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,811,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.01% of the company's stock.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of First Citizens BancShares stock traded down $12.97 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,953.58. 59,210 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 89,447. The stock has a market cap of $25.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.31, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $1,473.62 and a twelve month high of $2,412.93. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,784.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2,009.37.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $37.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $37.72 by $0.07. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.22% and a net margin of 18.55%. The firm had revenue of $2.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. Equities research analysts predict that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $1.95 dividend. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio is currently 4.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FCNCA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays dropped their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $2,568.00 to $2,400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $2,535.00 to $2,200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $2,500.00 to $2,600.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,303.00 to $2,384.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised First Citizens BancShares from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $2,250.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $2,336.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. purchased 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,610.00 per share, for a total transaction of $563,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,440,380. The trade was a 14.53% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Craig L. Nix purchased 17 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,881.13 per share, for a total transaction of $31,979.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 1,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,146,369.33. This trade represents a 1.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 13.40% of the company's stock.

About First Citizens BancShares

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.