First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) Stock Rating Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded First Bank from “hold” to “strong buy.” Analysts’ overall consensus rating is “Buy,” with a consensus price target of $19.67.
• First Bank reported quarterly earnings of $0.49 per share, beating the $0.44 estimate, and revenue of $38.76 million, above the $37.70 million forecast.
• Shares opened at $19.93, near the stock’s 12-month high of $21.29; institutional investors own 64.86% of the company.

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of First Bank from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of First Bank from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Hovde Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $20.00 price target (up from $18.00) on shares of First Bank in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of First Bank from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Bank has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $19.67.

First Bank Price Performance

Shares of FRBA stock opened at $19.93 on Wednesday. First Bank has a twelve month low of $14.40 and a twelve month high of $21.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $500.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.01 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $38.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.70 million. First Bank had a return on equity of 9.58% and a net margin of 17.73%. On average, analysts predict that First Bank will post 1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Bank

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Bank by 3,353.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 15,437 shares of the bank's stock valued at $266,000 after buying an additional 14,990 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bank in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $203,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bank in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,257,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of First Bank during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $283,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Bank during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $12,836,000. Institutional investors own 64.86% of the company's stock.

First Bank Company Profile

First Bank NASDAQ: FRBA is a community-focused commercial bank headquartered in Hamilton, New Jersey. Founded in 2007, the bank provides banking services to businesses, individuals and organizations in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania.

Its products and services include commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate financing, residential mortgage loans, consumer lending, checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, cash-management services and online banking. First Bank emphasizes relationship-based banking and serves small and mid-sized businesses, professionals, nonprofit organizations and individual customers.

First Bank operates a network of branches in central and southern New Jersey and the greater Philadelphia region.

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