First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Upgraded to “Outperform” at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $2,500.00 price objective on the bank’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 16.14% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on First Citizens BancShares in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $2,600.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,550.00 to $2,600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lowered shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,025.00 to $2,625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of First Citizens BancShares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $2,290.75.

First Citizens BancShares Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ FCNCA opened at $2,152.52 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.33 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. First Citizens BancShares has a 52 week low of $1,363.97 and a 52 week high of $2,388.78. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $2,167.37 and its 200 day moving average is $2,011.73.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $45.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $47.40 by ($1.53). The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 17.36% and a return on equity of 13.63%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $55.92 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Citizens BancShares will post 188.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 427 shares of the bank’s stock worth $720,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the second quarter worth approximately $475,000. Choreo LLC acquired a new stake in First Citizens BancShares during the second quarter worth approximately $373,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 40.1% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,404 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,832 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in First Citizens BancShares by 2.9% in the second quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 1,112 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,871,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.01% 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.