First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Stock Has Average Target Price of $67.94 According to Brokerages

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $67.94.

FBNC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on First Bancorp from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Zacks Research downgraded First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Raymond James Financial lowered First Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $72.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on First Bancorp from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th.

Institutional Trading of First Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. grew its position in First Bancorp by 16.8% in the third quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in First Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $58,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in First Bancorp by 31.3% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 20,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after buying an additional 4,849 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in First Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $11,049,000. Finally, Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in First Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $3,966,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FBNC opened at $59.85 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $63.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.41. The firm has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.59 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. First Bancorp has a 1-year low of $45.96 and a 1-year high of $66.78.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.07. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.12%. The firm had revenue of $127.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $126.07 million. Research analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 4.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.81%.

About First Bancorp

First Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina. Through its principal subsidiary, First Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and organizations.

First Bank offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, residential and commercial real estate financing, mortgage services, treasury and cash-management solutions, and online and mobile banking. The bank also provides wealth management and investment-related services through its financial services operations.

Founded in 1983, First Bancorp has grown from a community banking organization serving North Carolina’s Sandhills region into a regional banking company with locations across North Carolina and South Carolina.