Wells Fargo & Company Raises First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Price Target to $19.00

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) had its price target lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $18.00 to $19.00 in a report published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on FBP. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of First BanCorp. in a report on Tuesday. They issued an outperform rating and a $21.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on First BanCorp. from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th.

First BanCorp. Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE FBP opened at $18.91 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.81, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.12. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $17.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.12. First BanCorp. has a 12-month low of $12.72 and a 12-month high of $19.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.06. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 21.58% and a net margin of 25.82%. The business had revenue of $302.49 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $229.19 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.39 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 30th were paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Carlos Power sold 5,277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.01, for a total transaction of $95,038.77. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 255,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,596,800.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Carlos Power sold 5,277 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.01, for a total transaction of $95,038.77. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 255,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,596,800.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Gonzalez Orlando Berges sold 75,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.92, for a total transaction of $1,344,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 277,020 shares in the company, valued at $4,964,198.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in First BanCorp. by 239.7% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 96,145 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,686,000 after buying an additional 67,844 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,860,790 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,610,000 after acquiring an additional 110,797 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 56,423 shares of the bank’s stock worth $928,000 after acquiring an additional 661 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in First BanCorp. by 2,172.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,039,557 shares of the bank’s stock worth $17,101,000 after purchasing an additional 993,819 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter valued at about $113,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

First BanCorp. operates as a bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. The company operates through six segments: Commercial and Corporate Banking, Mortgage Banking, Consumer (Retail) Banking, Treasury and Investments, United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations.