First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $62.64 and last traded at $62.27, with a volume of 76865 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $61.19.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler cut First Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $58.00 to $64.00 in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Zacks Research downgraded First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised shares of First Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Bancorp has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.25.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $56.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.17. The firm has a market cap of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.22 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $83.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $123.43 million. First Bancorp had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 10.57%. On average, analysts anticipate that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

First Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a boost from First Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 34.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Mary Clara Capel sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.31, for a total transaction of $296,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,209,924. The trade was a 19.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold 10,142 shares of company stock worth $592,276 over the last 90 days. 3.65% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Bancorp

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Bancorp by 183.6% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in First Bancorp by 2,222.6% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 689 shares in the last quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. bought a new stake in First Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. First Horizon Corp raised its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 83.7% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 777 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

About First Bancorp

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank, offering a broad range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its core offerings include business lending, treasury and cash management, residential and commercial mortgage financing, and consumer deposit products. Through its subsidiary, First Bank provides online and branch-based banking solutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and digital banking tools designed to meet the needs of individuals, small- to mid-sized businesses, and professional institutions.

The company maintains a network of full-service banking centers and loan production offices across North Carolina and South Carolina, with a focus on markets in the Piedmont, Sandhills and coastal regions.