Peregrine Capital Management LLC Decreases Position in First Bancorp $FBNC

Peregrine Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) by 15.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 118,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 21,048 shares during the quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC’s holdings in First Bancorp were worth $6,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in First Bancorp by 13.0% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 884,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,001,000 after purchasing an additional 101,529 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 32.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 587,061 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,884,000 after buying an additional 142,765 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $17,999,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in shares of First Bancorp by 6.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 258,671 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,383,000 after buying an additional 15,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 7.7% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 141,199 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,225,000 after buying an additional 10,078 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of First Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded First Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $62.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.00.

First Bancorp Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:FBNC opened at $53.66 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.55 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. First Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $34.50 and a fifty-two week high of $56.45.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.08. First Bancorp had a net margin of 17.50% and a return on equity of 9.61%. The firm had revenue of $89.61 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $113.47 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, January 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is 38.66%.

First Bancorp Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank, offering a broad range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its core offerings include business lending, treasury and cash management, residential and commercial mortgage financing, and consumer deposit products. Through its subsidiary, First Bank provides online and branch-based banking solutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and digital banking tools designed to meet the needs of individuals, small- to mid-sized businesses, and professional institutions.

The company maintains a network of full-service banking centers and loan production offices across North Carolina and South Carolina, with a focus on markets in the Piedmont, Sandhills and coastal regions.