Bridgewater Associates LP Trims Stake in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Bridgewater Associates LP cut its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 50.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,268 shares of the bank's stock after selling 1,293 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $2,334,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,769 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,339,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 1.2% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 903 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,475,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 11.7% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 592 shares of the bank's stock valued at $968,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank increased its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 62.6% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 3,829 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,260,000 after buying an additional 1,474 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. 61.18% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,025.00 to $2,625.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Wedbush cut their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $2,150.00 to $2,000.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,550.00 to $2,300.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $2,093.40.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of First Citizens BancShares stock traded down $11.52 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $2,295.00. The company had a trading volume of 67,738 shares, compared to its average volume of 94,215. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company's 50-day moving average is $2,055.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,912.44. The company has a market cap of $32.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15 and a beta of 0.80. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $1,363.97 and a twelve month high of $2,388.78.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $47.40 by ($1.53). First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 17.36% and a return on equity of 13.63%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $55.92 EPS. Analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 187.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $1.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.34%. This is a boost from First Citizens BancShares's previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. First Citizens BancShares's payout ratio is currently 3.76%.

First Citizens BancShares Company 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.