Stock Repurchase Plan Authorized by First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Board of Directors

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Friday, October 23rd, RTT News reports. The company plans to buy back $1.20 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 4.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on FCNCA shares. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $2,550.00 price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,050.00 to $2,100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Citigroup reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Monday. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $2,475.00 price objective on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on First Citizens BancShares from $2,376.00 to $2,650.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2,344.00.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

Shares of First Citizens BancShares stock traded down $30.23 during trading on Monday, hitting $2,345.61. 142,936 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 75,857. First Citizens BancShares has a 52 week low of $1,735.03 and a 52 week high of $2,429.96. The stock has a market cap of $26.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.58. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $2,137.33 and its 200-day moving average is $2,061.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 23rd. The bank reported $55.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $46.18 by $9.19. The company had revenue of $2.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. First Citizens BancShares had a net margin of 16.54% and a return on equity of 12.49%. Research analysts expect that First Citizens BancShares will post 193.20 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Citizens BancShares Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 30th will be paid a dividend of $2.25 per share. This represents a $9.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from First Citizens BancShares’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 30th. First Citizens BancShares’s payout ratio is currently 4.49%.

Insider Activity at First Citizens BancShares

In other news, major shareholder Olivia Britton Holding sold 7,000 shares of First Citizens BancShares stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.53, for a total value of $136,710.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $292,950. This trade represents a 31.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Diane E. Morais bought 50 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $2,168.11 per share, with a total value of $108,405.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $216,811. This represents a 100.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 14.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About First Citizens BancShares

First Citizens BancShares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. Its principal subsidiary, First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and institutions through a network of branches and digital banking channels.

The bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and residential lending, commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate financing, equipment finance, treasury management, and payment services.