Roberto Herencia Sells 4,723 Shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Stock

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Director Roberto Herencia sold 4,723 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.63, for a total transaction of $106,881.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 637,019 shares in the company, valued at $14,415,739.97. This represents a 0.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

Shares of First BanCorp. stock opened at $22.44 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.43, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.20. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $16.40 and a 12 month high of $23.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.03. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 17.33% and a net margin of 27.48%.The firm had revenue of $257.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.18 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 26th. This is a boost from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First BanCorp.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBP. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 151.7% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,873 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,129 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in First BanCorp. by 1,695.8% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,155 shares of the bank’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 2,035 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 328.8% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,950 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 2,262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FBP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $24.00 price objective (up previously from $23.00) on shares of First BanCorp. in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Hovde Group raised their target price on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.58.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

First BanCorp (NYSE: FBP) is a financial holding company headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Through its principal banking subsidiary, FirstBank Puerto Rico, the company offers a comprehensive range of banking services including commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, cash management solutions and treasury services. It also provides mortgage origination and servicing, equipment leasing, investment management, and insurance agency services.

In its commercial banking segment, First BanCorp serves small and midsize enterprises as well as large corporate clients, delivering tailored credit facilities, letters of credit, and foreign trade financing.