Barclays Initiates Coverage on First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Research analysts at Barclays assumed coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage set an “equal weight” rating and a $1,850.00 price target on the bank’s stock. Barclays‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 17.90% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on FCNCA. StockNews.com cut First Citizens BancShares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Monday, January 15th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,800.00 price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group boosted their price target on First Citizens BancShares from $1,644.00 to $1,754.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Citizens BancShares presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,785.57.

First Citizens BancShares Trading Down 2.0 %

NASDAQ FCNCA opened at $1,569.17 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. First Citizens BancShares has a twelve month low of $945.32 and a twelve month high of $1,651.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.78 billion, a PE ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $1,559.06 and its 200 day moving average is $1,461.56.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The bank reported $46.58 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $48.49 by ($1.91). First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 13.52% and a net margin of 51.04%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. Research analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares will post 178.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at First Citizens BancShares

In other news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 622 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,315.00 per share, for a total transaction of $817,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 97,609 shares in the company, valued at $128,355,835. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other First Citizens BancShares news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,559.09, for a total value of $935,454.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,842 shares in the company, valued at $7,549,113.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. purchased 622 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,315.00 per share, with a total value of $817,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 97,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $128,355,835. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders bought 1,388 shares of company stock worth $1,825,220. 13.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 20 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Castleview Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 53.3% in the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 23 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 8 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.18% 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.