Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Purchases 544 Shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,681 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 544 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $68,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FBP. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 222.6% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,829 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,952 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 5,054.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,701 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,668 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. bought a new position in shares of First BanCorp. in the third quarter valued at approximately $529,000. Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 14.9% in the third quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 72,125 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,527,000 after purchasing an additional 9,353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First BanCorp. in the third quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FBP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Hovde Group decreased their price target on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.75, for a total value of $214,160.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 176,222 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,656,606.50. The trade was a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

NYSE:FBP opened at $20.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.24. First BanCorp. has a 1 year low of $16.24 and a 1 year high of $22.40. The company has a market capitalization of $3.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.14.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.05. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 24.37%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.18 dividend. This is an increase from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.36%.

First BanCorp. Company 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.