The First Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FNLC) Short Interest Up 17.9% in February

The First Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FNLC) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 33,000 shares, an increase of 17.9% from the February 13th total of 28,000 shares. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 22,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days.

First Bancorp Trading Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ:FNLC traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $25.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,439. The firm has a market capitalization of $280.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.68. First Bancorp has a 1 year low of $21.77 and a 1 year high of $31.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FNLC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter. First Bancorp had a net margin of 16.37% and a return on equity of 10.90%.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.75%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 6th. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is 59.50%.

Institutional Trading of First Bancorp

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FNLC. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 73.5% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 10,557 shares of the bank’s stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 4,472 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 14,935 shares of the bank’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 3,401 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 94,658 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,589,000 after purchasing an additional 4,567 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in First Bancorp by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 473,481 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $12,949,000 after acquiring an additional 1,525 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in First Bancorp by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 25,279 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $692,000 after acquiring an additional 2,144 shares in the last quarter. 40.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About First Bancorp

The First Bancorp, Inc operates as the holding company for First National Bank that provides a range of banking products and services to individuals and businesses. It offers various deposit products, including demand, NOW, time, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit accounts. The company also provides commercial loans comprising commercial real estate owner occupied, such as mortgage loans to finance investments in real property such as retail space, offices, industrial buildings, hotels, educational facilities, and other specific or mixed use properties; commercial real estate non-owner occupied loans; commercial construction to finance construction in a mix of owner- and nonowner occupied commercial real estate properties; and commercial and industrial loans, including revolving and term loan for financing working capital and/or capital investment.