Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Grows Stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 47.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,301 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,134 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 2.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,084,199 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,053,000 after acquiring an additional 52,384 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 32.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,034,059 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,918,000 after acquiring an additional 250,577 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 4.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,288,893 shares of the bank’s stock worth $165,408,000 after acquiring an additional 505,003 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 57.8% during the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 100,719 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,356,000 after acquiring an additional 36,882 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 14.4% during the third quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 208,646 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,808,000 after acquiring an additional 26,192 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of First BanCorp. stock opened at $17.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.16. First BanCorp. has a fifty-two week low of $10.18 and a fifty-two week high of $17.74. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $16.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $15.94.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $302.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $229.19 million. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 21.58% and a net margin of 25.82%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.39 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.16 dividend. This is a positive change from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is currently 36.57%.

Insider Activity at First BanCorp.

In other First BanCorp. news, Director Crespo Luz sold 10,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.47, for a total value of $164,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 50,055 shares in the company, valued at $824,405.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other First BanCorp. news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.17, for a total value of $858,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,126,325 shares in the company, valued at $19,339,000.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Crespo Luz sold 10,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.47, for a total value of $164,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 50,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $824,405.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 132,600 shares of company stock valued at $2,278,784 over the last three months. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on FBP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on First BanCorp. from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on First BanCorp. from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th.

About First BanCorp.

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.