First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System lowered its holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 49,842 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,349 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,084,199 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,053,000 after purchasing an additional 52,384 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,034,059 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,918,000 after purchasing an additional 250,577 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,288,893 shares of the bank’s stock worth $165,408,000 after purchasing an additional 505,003 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 57.8% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 100,719 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,356,000 after purchasing an additional 36,882 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 208,646 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,808,000 after purchasing an additional 26,192 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

Shares of FBP opened at $16.29 on Thursday. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $10.18 and a one year high of $17.70. The company has a 50-day moving average of $16.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.81. The stock has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.58, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $299.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $227.75 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 26.19% and a return on equity of 21.62%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This is a boost from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FBP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $18.50 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nayda Rivera sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.12, for a total transaction of $256,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 246,930 shares in the company, valued at $4,227,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other First BanCorp. news, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 57,600 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.34, for a total value of $998,784.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 98,501 shares in the company, valued at $1,708,007.34. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nayda Rivera sold 15,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.12, for a total transaction of $256,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 246,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,227,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 132,600 shares of company stock worth $2,278,784. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.