Bailard Inc. Acquires New Holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Bailard Inc. purchased a new position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 11,800 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FBP. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Strs Ohio raised its position in First BanCorp. by 206.3% in the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 4,900 shares of the bank’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 3,300 shares during the period. SageView Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in First BanCorp. in the first quarter worth approximately $110,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $113,000. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

FBP opened at $21.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.09, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.74 and a 200 day moving average of $18.12. First BanCorp. has a fifty-two week low of $12.72 and a fifty-two week high of $22.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.77.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $304.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $230.26 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 25.91% and a return on equity of 21.86%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is 36.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First BanCorp.

In other First BanCorp. news, EVP Carlos Power sold 22,896 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.53, for a total transaction of $492,950.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 232,340 shares in the company, valued at $5,002,280.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other First BanCorp. news, EVP Carlos Power sold 22,896 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.53, for a total transaction of $492,950.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 232,340 shares in the company, valued at $5,002,280.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Donald Kafka sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.81, for a total transaction of $1,090,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 174,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,807,786.09. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $21.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Monday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First BanCorp. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.83.

First BanCorp. Profile

First BanCorp. operates as a bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. The company operates through six segments: Commercial and Corporate Banking, Mortgage Banking, Consumer (Retail) Banking, Treasury and Investments, United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations.