First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th.

First Bancorp Stock Up 4.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FBNC opened at $42.95 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.34. First Bancorp has a 12-month low of $26.00 and a 12-month high of $45.41. The firm has a market cap of $1.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $143.42 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.00 million. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.39% and a net margin of 20.17%. Analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 30th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total transaction of $30,500.75. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $347,648.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Mason Y. Garrett sold 22,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.41, for a total value of $989,748.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 196,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,526,418.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total value of $30,500.75. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $347,648.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in First Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in First Bancorp by 17,233.3% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,551 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $68,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth approximately $185,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides banking products and services for individuals and small to medium-sized businesses. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts.