First Citizens Bancshares rises after Piper Sandler upgrades to 'overweight'

Shares of First Citizens Bancshares FCNCA.O rise 1.8% to $1,762.5 in early trading

Piper Sandler upgrades rating to "overweight" from "neutral"

"FCNCA stands to benefit from a sizable share repurchase program that should become much more impactful at these lower prices" - Piper Sandler analysts said in a note

In January, co's CEO Frank Holding said its solid capital and liquidity positions allowed it to buy back more than 460,000 shares of its Class A common stock for $963 million during Q4

Nine brokerages rate company "buy" or higher, and five rate "hold"; median PT at $2,517.5 - LSEG data

As of last close, stock is down 18% YTD