Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning Sells 124 Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning lowered its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) by 34.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 239 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 124 shares during the quarter. Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning’s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $391,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FCNCA. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 49.5% during the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 713 shares of the bank’s stock worth $985,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 21.0% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,622 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,619,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 60.0% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 56 shares of the bank’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 23.7% during the third quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 245 shares of the bank’s stock worth $338,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 265.5% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 2,851 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,935,000 after purchasing an additional 2,071 shares in the last quarter. 61.18% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at First Citizens BancShares

In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,766.24, for a total transaction of $1,766,240.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,335 shares in the company, valued at $4,124,170.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,766.24, for a total value of $1,766,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,335 shares in the company, valued at $4,124,170.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 516 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,750.00, for a total value of $903,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,433,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,000 shares of company stock worth $5,273,568. Insiders own 12.85% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Performance

First Citizens BancShares stock opened at $1,716.10 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $1,706.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,579.99. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $1,241.05 and a 52-week high of $1,810.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.53 and a beta of 0.83.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $52.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $44.27 by $8.65. The company had revenue of $2.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 15.48% and a net margin of 18.22%. As a group, analysts anticipate that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 190.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were issued a dividend of $1.64 per share. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is presently 3.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,900.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. 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 target price for the company. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,650.00 target price (up from $1,600.00) on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Citizens BancShares presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,842.40.

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.