Edgestream Partners L.P. Buys 193,981 Shares of First BanCorp. $FBP

Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 46.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 607,965 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 193,981 shares during the period. First BanCorp. accounts for about 0.4% of Edgestream Partners L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Edgestream Partners L.P.’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $12,986,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FBP. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in First BanCorp. by 24.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 42,927 shares of the bank’s stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 8,419 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 96,368 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,847,000 after purchasing an additional 4,236 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 328.8% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,950 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 2,262 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 516,986 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,911,000 after buying an additional 29,631 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in First BanCorp. by 1,445.7% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 430,329 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,249,000 after buying an additional 402,488 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on FBP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on First BanCorp. from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First BanCorp. from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of First BanCorp. from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.75.

First BanCorp. Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:FBP opened at $28.91 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.82. 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 12-month low of $19.16 and a 12-month high of $29.40. The business’s 50 day moving average is $25.98 and its 200 day moving average is $23.53.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $264.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.31 million. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.03% and a net margin of 29.24%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 2.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 27th. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is currently 33.76%.

About First BanCorp.

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.