Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Cuts Stock Holdings in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lowered its stake in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 19.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 50,009 shares of the bank's stock after selling 12,041 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned about 0.36% of First Citizens BancShares worth $105,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of FCNCA. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 7,431 shares of the bank's stock valued at $15,981,000 after buying an additional 666 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP increased its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 127.8% during the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 4,672 shares of the bank's stock worth $9,872,000 after purchasing an additional 2,621 shares during the period. First American Trust FSB acquired a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the fourth quarter worth about $226,000. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 53.0% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 3,633 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,676,000 after purchasing an additional 1,258 shares during the period. Finally, Kirkoswald Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $22,821,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.01% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Insider Buying and Selling at First Citizens BancShares

In other First Citizens BancShares news, CFO Craig L. Nix bought 17 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $1,881.13 per share, for a total transaction of $31,979.21. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 1,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,146,369.33. This represents a 1.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 13.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ FCNCA traded down $30.65 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $1,823.47. The company had a trading volume of 71,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 86,281. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $2,010.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2,055.68. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $1,518.00 and a 52-week high of $2,412.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market cap of $24.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.63, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.81.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The bank reported $45.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $39.32 by $5.78. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.22% and a net margin of 18.55%. Sell-side analysts predict that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 earnings per share for the current year.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $1.95 per share. This represents a $7.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,535.00 to $2,200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $2,550.00 to $2,600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $2,500.00 to $2,600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,456.00 to $2,568.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $2,288.08.

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.