First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Downgraded by Autonomous Res to Strong Sell

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) was downgraded by investment analysts at Autonomous Res from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on FCNCA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $2,154.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Fundamental Research set a $2,350.00 target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,150.00 to $2,350.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $2,243.75.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Up 2.0%

NASDAQ:FCNCA opened at $2,121.63 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $24.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.20, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.62. First Citizens BancShares has a 52-week low of $1,623.76 and a 52-week high of $2,232.21. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $2,018.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $2,022.45.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $44.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $43.31 by $1.55. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 11.48% and a net margin of 15.62%.The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $37.79 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Citizens BancShares will post 175.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. acquired 528 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $1,813.37 per share, with a total value of $957,459.36. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 64,100 shares in the company, valued at $116,237,017. This represents a 0.83% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 7,190 shares of company stock worth $12,573,868. Corporate insiders own 14.63% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Citizens BancShares

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCNCA. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in First Citizens BancShares by 219.3% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,001,000 after acquiring an additional 1,092 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 65.5% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 6,301 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,876,000 after acquiring an additional 2,493 shares during the period. SummitTX Capital L.P. acquired a new position in shares of First Citizens BancShares during the 1st quarter worth about $1,095,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 25.9% during the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 457 shares of the bank’s stock worth $861,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA bought a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the 1st quarter valued at about $303,000. 78.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First Citizens BancShares

First Citizens BancShares, Inc is the bank holding company for First Citizens Bank, a full‑service commercial bank headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. The company traces its roots to a community bank founded in 1898 and has grown into a diversified financial services organization that operates through its banking subsidiary to serve retail, commercial and institutional clients.

First Citizens offers a broad suite of banking products and services, including consumer and business deposit accounts, commercial and industrial lending, real estate and mortgage lending, treasury and cash management, and specialized lending solutions.