First Trust Advisors LP Buys 527,991 Shares of First BanCorp. $FBP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 12.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,862,288 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 527,991 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $103,858,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FBP. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter worth about $5,222,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,874,000. Novem Group purchased a new position in First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,138,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in First BanCorp. by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 128,580 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,665,000 after buying an additional 54,713 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in First BanCorp. by 147.4% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 369,821 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,667,000 after acquiring an additional 220,318 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FBP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Benchmark increased their price objective on First BanCorp. from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings raised First BanCorp. from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Truist Financial upped their price target on First BanCorp. from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Raymond James Financial increased their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $28.75.

First BanCorp. Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of FBP stock opened at $28.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. First BanCorp. has a 52-week low of $19.16 and a 52-week high of $29.00. The company has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 12.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s fifty day moving average is $25.66 and its 200 day moving average is $23.35.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.08. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.03% and a net margin of 29.24%.The business had revenue of $264.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $265.31 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 27th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 27th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.56%.

About First BanCorp.

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.