Benjamin Edwards Inc. Purchases 28 Shares of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) by 12.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 248 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in First Citizens BancShares were worth $352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCNCA. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 20 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in First Citizens BancShares in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in 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 in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 362.5% during the fourth quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 37 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in First Citizens BancShares by 60.0% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 56 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. 61.18% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,766.24, for a total transaction of $1,766,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,335 shares in the company, valued at $4,124,170.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Olivia Britton Holding bought 466 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1,315.00 per share, for a total transaction of $612,790.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 121,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $160,027,610. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ellen R. Alemany sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,766.24, for a total transaction of $1,766,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,335 shares in the company, valued at $4,124,170.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 1,388 shares of company stock valued at $1,825,220 and sold 2,600 shares valued at $4,458,964. 13.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First Citizens BancShares Trading Down 0.2 %

FCNCA traded down $3.50 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,710.00. 62,387 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 82,503. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $945.32 and a 1 year high of $1,810.03. The firm has a market cap of $24.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.49 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,600.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,491.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

First Citizens BancShares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a $1.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $6.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is currently 3.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,800.00 price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $1,850.00 to $1,950.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,950.00 price target for the company. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $1,650.00 price objective (up from $1,600.00) on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,829.90.

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.