Insider Selling: First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) EVP Sells $754,437.42 in Stock

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 34,122 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.11, for a total transaction of $754,437.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 62,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,391,537.07. This represents a 35.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

Shares of First BanCorp. stock opened at $22.14 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $21.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.11. First BanCorp. has a twelve month low of $16.40 and a twelve month high of $22.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.81.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $257.17 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.18 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 27.48% and a return on equity of 17.33%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 26th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. This is a positive change from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is presently 33.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FBP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Hovde Group lifted their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $24.00 price objective (up from $23.00) on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First BanCorp. in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First BanCorp. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.58.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First BanCorp.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,467,300 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $445,017,000 after purchasing an additional 413,557 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 8.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 7,541,918 shares of the bank’s stock worth $157,098,000 after buying an additional 616,170 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,207,765 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $92,781,000 after buying an additional 148,822 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 31.6% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 2,284,146 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,365,000 after buying an additional 548,164 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 8.5% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,005,383 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,259,000 after acquiring an additional 157,721 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

First BanCorp (NYSE: FBP) is a financial holding company headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Through its principal banking subsidiary, FirstBank Puerto Rico, the company offers a comprehensive range of banking services including commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, cash management solutions and treasury services. It also provides mortgage origination and servicing, equipment leasing, investment management, and insurance agency services.

In its commercial banking segment, First BanCorp serves small and midsize enterprises as well as large corporate clients, delivering tailored credit facilities, letters of credit, and foreign trade financing.