Artisan Partners, an investment management company, released its “Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund” fourth quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The Russell Midcap Value Index ended Q4 somewhat lower, down -1.75%, after posting robust gains in Q3. The index provided a 13.07% return for the year. Following the US election, mid-cap value stocks experienced a significant rally with the larger US equity market, hitting all-time highs before declining in December. In the quarter, the fund’s Investor Class fund ARTQX returned -3.70%, Advisor Class fund APDQX posted a return of -3.67%, and Institutional Class fund APHQX returned -3.67%, compared to a -1.75% return for the Russell Midcap Value Index. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2024.

In its fourth quarter 2024 investor letter, Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund emphasized stocks such as First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA). First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) is a holding company for First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company that offers retail and commercial banking services. The one-month return of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) was -15.60%, and its shares gained 16.65% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On March 14, 2025, First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) stock closed at $1,807.49 per share with a market capitalization of $24.375 billion.

Artisan Mid Cap Value Fund stated the following regarding First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:

"Top Q4 contributors included Expedia, First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) and Vail Resorts. Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, and one of the largest family-controlled banks in the US, First Citizens has been a big winner following its 2023 acquisition of the failed Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). Besides a discounted purchase price, the transaction added scale and geographic diversity, while also offering downside protections from a loss-sharing agreement with the FDIC. Recent loan growth has been strong, particularly within the SVB commercial segment. The bank also announced a$3.5 billion stock repurchase authorization, or about 12%ofshares outstanding, to be completed over the next several quarters. First Citizens had previously paused share repurchases while it was absorbing SVB."

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First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) is not on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 45 hedge fund portfolios held First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) at the end of the fourth quarter compared to 46 in the third quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

In another article, we discussed First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCNCA) and shared the list of highest-priced stocks. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q4 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.