First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Stock Price Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)’s stock price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $52.87 and traded as high as $61.14. First Bancorp shares last traded at $60.93, with a volume of 158,358 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FBNC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of First Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $58.00 to $64.00 in a report on Saturday, February 7th. 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 on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research cut First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, First Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.25.

First Bancorp Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.74 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $55.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82.

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

First Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a positive change from First Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Mary Clara Capel sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 owned 20,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,924. This trade represents a 19.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,142 shares of company stock worth $592,276. 3.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBNC. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new position in First Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $7,899,000. Neuberger Berman Group LLC bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $299,000. Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new position in First Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $495,000. Martin & Co. Inc. TN raised its stake in First Bancorp by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN now owns 66,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,396,000 after buying an additional 2,054 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its holdings in First Bancorp by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,012,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,661,000 after buying an additional 169,363 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Bancorp Company Profile

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.