First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $2,203.53, but opened at $2,087.81. First Citizens BancShares shares last traded at $2,059.8950, with a volume of 42,435 shares traded.

Key First Citizens BancShares News

Here are the key news stories impacting First Citizens BancShares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results materially beat estimates — adjusted EPS of $51.27 versus consensus near $44.2 and revenue of $2.25B roughly in line with forecasts; margin and ROE metrics remained solid, supporting the beat. First Citizens BancShares Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a meaningful quarterly common dividend of $2.10 per share (record Feb. 27, payable Mar. 16), which is supportive for income-focused investors and signals confidence in cash flow. First Citizens BancShares Declares Dividends
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and market write-ups emphasized the beat but noted underlying metric comparisons (year‑ago EPS, margins, and model assumptions) that investors should parse for sustainability; some analysts had trimmed forecasts ahead of the print. Zacks: Key Metrics Versus Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the upside surprise and dividend, the shares fell today — likely driven by near-term profit-taking after a strong multi‑month run, valuation digestion (P/E ~12 but high absolute price), and broader market/financial-sector moves rather than company-specific weakness. Investors should watch guidance/comments from management on margin drivers and credit trends for direction. MarketBeat: FCNCA Stock Profile

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FCNCA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial boosted their target price on First Citizens BancShares from $2,000.00 to $2,050.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Raymond James Financial upgraded First Citizens BancShares from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $2,100.00 to $2,200.00 in a report on Thursday, November 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded First Citizens BancShares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $2,300.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Citizens BancShares in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of First Citizens BancShares from $2,190.00 to $2,456.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $2,250.55.

First Citizens BancShares Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $2,055.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,954.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.79 and a beta of 0.69.

First Citizens BancShares (NASDAQ:FCNCA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 23rd. The bank reported $51.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $44.24 by $7.03. First Citizens BancShares had a return on equity of 11.09% and a net margin of 15.99%.The company had revenue of $2.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that First Citizens BancShares, Inc. will post 167.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ellen R. Alemany bought 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $1,000.00 per share, for a total transaction of $300,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $300,000. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Frank B. Holding, Jr. bought 135 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $1,629.67 per share, with a total value of $220,005.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,118,176.09. The trade was a 5.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 13.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Citizens BancShares

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in First Citizens BancShares by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 435,278 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $778,785,000 after buying an additional 18,190 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares in the second quarter valued at approximately $177,604,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of First Citizens BancShares by 0.3% in the second quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 79,132 shares of the bank’s stock worth $154,819,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in First Citizens BancShares by 16.3% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 78,310 shares of the bank’s stock worth $140,109,000 after acquiring an additional 10,948 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in First Citizens BancShares by 57.5% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 76,088 shares of the bank’s stock worth $164,247,000 after acquiring an additional 27,789 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.01% of the company’s stock.

First Citizens BancShares Company Profile

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.