First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Short Interest Update

First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 234,900 shares, a drop of 11.8% from the June 15th total of 266,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 81,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,757.27, for a total value of $1,757,270.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,335 shares in the company, valued at $2,345,955.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,757.27, for a total value of $1,757,270.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,335 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,345,955.45. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 516 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,750.00, for a total transaction of $903,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 819 shares in the company, valued at $1,433,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,273,568. 13.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Citizens BancShares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 215 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $352,000 after buying an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Lincoln National Corp raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 277 shares of the bank’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 165 shares of the bank’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 161 shares of the bank’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 1.6% in the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 450 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $736,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.18% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FCNCA traded up $3.38 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $1,834.48. 69,867 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 81,506. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. The company has a market cap of $26.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.18 and a beta of 0.83. First Citizens BancShares has a one year low of $1,274.91 and a one year high of $1,856.30. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,712.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,602.37.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last issued 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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, equities research analysts predict that First Citizens BancShares will post 191.52 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on FCNCA shares. Piper Sandler lowered shares of First Citizens BancShares from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group began 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 for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 target price for the company. Raymond James upgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,900.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $1,650.00 price objective (up from $1,600.00) on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,857.18.

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.