251,922 Shares in First BanCorp. $FBP Acquired by WINTON GROUP Ltd

WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 251,922 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $5,222,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 14.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 910,845 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $20,084,000 after purchasing an additional 114,931 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 48.3% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 402,890 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,884,000 after purchasing an additional 131,293 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 11.7% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 697,827 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $15,387,000 after purchasing an additional 73,168 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 176.1% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 821,918 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,123,000 after purchasing an additional 524,256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in First BanCorp. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,874,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

First BanCorp. stock opened at $24.31 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.81, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.83. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $23.29 and its 200 day moving average is $21.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. First BanCorp. has a 52-week low of $19.16 and a 52-week high of $24.64.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $258.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $263.54 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 28.31% and a return on equity of 17.51%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 28th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is 35.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised shares of First BanCorp. from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $26.00 to $27.00 in a report on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.50 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of First BanCorp. from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $25.86.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

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.