First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th.

First Bancorp Price Performance

First Bancorp stock opened at $41.00 on Tuesday. First Bancorp has a 52-week low of $26.00 and a 52-week high of $45.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $35.34 and its 200 day moving average is $34.07. The company has a market cap of $1.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.80 and a beta of 1.03.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $143.42 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.00 million. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.39% and a net margin of 20.17%. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Bancorp will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 30th were issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is 31.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Bancorp news, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total value of $30,500.75. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,569 shares in the company, valued at $347,648.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Mason Y. Garrett sold 22,800 shares of First Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.41, for a total transaction of $989,748.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 196,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,526,418.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total value of $30,500.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $347,648.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FBNC. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of First Bancorp by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 20,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $661,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 33,399 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 8,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 1.4% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 35,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Bancorp

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides banking products and services for individuals and small to medium-sized businesses. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts.