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what it is
First Citizens is a large U.S. bank that takes deposits, makes loans, and sells banking services to consumers and businesses.
how it gets paid
Last year First Citizens Banc made $9.5B in revenue.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 2.2% last year. During the fourth quarter, net interest income dipped slightly, to $1.7 billion, as a loweryielding asset portfolio pressured margins.
what just happened
First Citizens printed $45.81 in fourth-quarter earnings per share, ahead of the $43.09 estimate.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
60/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
13.0x trailing p/e — the market's not buying it — or you found a deal
0.6% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
xvary composite: 61/100 — average
What they do
First Citizens is a large U.S. bank that takes deposits, makes loans, and sells banking services to consumers and businesses.
This bank wins the old-fashioned way: scale, branches, and dealmaking. It runs more than 500 branches across 30 states, so your checking account, loan, treasury tools, and local banker can all sit under one roof. The real edge is consolidation. It bought CIT in 2022 and SVB's commercial banking business in 2023, which let it turn a regional bank footprint into a national one.
How they make money
$9.5B
annual revenue · revenue declined -2.2% last year
total revenue
$9.5B
2.2%
The products that matter
takes deposits and makes loans
Banking operations
$9.5B annual revenue
it's the business as shown here, and revenue fell 2.2% from last year. that makes growth the first question, not the second.
core engine
turns equity into profit
Earnings power
10% return on equity
for every $1 of equity, the bank produced $0.10 in profit. that's fine. banks that earn premium multiples usually give you more than fine.
profitability test
pays a modest shareholder yield
Dividend
0.6% yield
you get some cash back, but not much. this is not why you own FCNCA. you own it for earnings and compounding, not for income.
not the draw
Key numbers
13.0x
profit multiple
Price-to-earnings → how many years of current profit you are paying for → so what: 13 times trailing earnings is cheap for a bank expected to grow earnings from $136 to $274.
$274.00
next-year profit
Analysts expect earnings per share to rise from $136.0 trailing to $274.0 forward, which is 101.5% growth. That is the entire debate.
10%
return on equity
Return on equity → profit generated from shareholder money → so what: 10% is solid, but it is not elite enough to forgive a bad integration.
0.6%
dividend yield
Dividend yield → cash paid back to you each year → so what: 0.6% says this is not an income stock. You are here for execution and rerating.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 40 / 100
- return on equity 10% — $0.10 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in FCNCA 3 years ago → it's now worth $28,380.
The index would have given you $13,880.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
First Citizens printed $45.81 in fourth-quarter earnings per share, ahead of the $43.09 estimate.
The quarter beat expectations by 6.31%. The catch is that net interest income slipped to $1.7 billion, which tells you the beat came with some operational unevenness.
$7.1B
revenue
$45.81
eps
n/a
n/a
the number that mattered
The key number was $1.7 billion in net interest income, because that is the bank's core earning engine and it dipped.
-
first citizens bancshares wrapped up 2025 with decent results.
-
the north carolina-based bank delivered earnings of $45.81 per share for the fourth quarter, which was better than we had anticipated, but lower than last year’s figure. (annual comparisons were difficult owing to a tax benefit realized in 2025.) looking to 2026, earnings ought to advance about 8%, to $178.00 per share, in line with our prior forecast.
-
meanwhile, the bank’s operations have been somewhat uneven.
-
during the fourth quarter, net interest income dipped slightly, to $1.7 billion, as a loweryielding asset portfolio pressured margins.
-
although, the bank did reduce the provision for losses, which was a plus.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk is litigation and legal liability inside first-citizens bank & trust.
high
litigation and legal liability
Feb 24, 2026 — management explicitly flagged litigation and other legal liability risks in the ordinary course of business.
legal costs hit earnings directly, and this is already a business coming off a 2.2% revenue decline
med
revenue stagnation
Revenue is $9.5B and moving backward, not forward. For banks, flat-to-down revenue can trap a stock in a fair multiple for longer than investors expect.
another year of declining revenue would make 13.0x earnings look normal, not cheap
med
average profitability
Return on equity is 10%. That's respectable. It is not the kind of number that forces the market to award a premium multiple.
if profitability does not improve, upside depends more on sentiment than on business quality
low
price reset risk
The stock sits near the top of a $1473–$2232 52-week range, while price stability is only 40 / 100.
when fundamentals are merely okay, stocks near the high end of the range have less room for forgiveness
legal exposure, declining revenue, and a merely decent 10% return on equity are enough to keep this from being an easy bank stock.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
trend
revenue direction
$9.5B in revenue fell 2.2% last year. if that line turns positive, the stock has a cleaner case.
metric
return on equity
10% is solid, not special. premium bank multiples usually need better than solid.
risk
legal liability updates
management flagged litigation risk on Feb 24, 2026. any expansion there matters because growth is already thin.
calendar
next earnings report
you want two things: less revenue slippage and commentary that sounds operational, not defensive.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
60 / 100
in human-speak, analysts think the numbers are workable but not smooth. expect the occasional surprise.
balance sheet grade
B++
Above average financial health. Good enough to trust, not strong enough to ignore the risks.
risk rank
3
This sits around the middle of the pack on safety. You're not in a bunker stock.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 2 consecutive quarters — 266 buyers vs. 259 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 7.4M shares. net buying for 2 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$1689
$3499
$2154
current price
$3015
target midpoint · +40% from current · 3-5yr high: $3620 (+70% · 14% ann'l return)
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