Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. Sells 502 Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Free Report) by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,840 shares of the bank's stock after selling 502 shares during the period. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.'s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $5,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in First Citizens BancShares in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in First Citizens BancShares in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new position in First Citizens BancShares in the second quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 120.0% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 66 shares of the bank's stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FCNCA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $2,005.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of First Citizens BancShares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,950.00 to $2,250.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Wedbush cut their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,150.00 to $2,000.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Citizens BancShares currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $2,025.90.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

NASDAQ FCNCA traded up $351.11 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $2,272.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 267,978 shares, compared to its average volume of 87,400. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37 and a beta of 0.80. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $1,363.97 and a 12 month high of $2,275.90. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1,940.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,845.91.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $47.40 by ($1.53). First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.78% and a net margin of 17.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $55.92 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 189.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $1.95 per share. This represents a $7.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This is an increase from First Citizens BancShares's previous quarterly dividend of $1.64. First Citizens BancShares's dividend payout ratio is 4.47%.

First Citizens BancShares declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to buy up to 12.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.