Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Buys 23,012 Shares of First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA - Free Report) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 890,493 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 23,012 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 4.55% of First Bank worth $12,529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of First Bank in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in First Bank during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $98,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in First Bank by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 9,419 shares of the bank's stock worth $133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,982 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in First Bank by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 12,452 shares of the bank's stock worth $175,000 after purchasing an additional 2,697 shares during the period. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P purchased a new stake in First Bank during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $186,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FRBA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Hovde Group boosted their target price on shares of First Bank from $17.00 to $17.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of First Bank from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

First Bank Price Performance

FRBA traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $15.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 48,802. The stock has a market cap of $299.34 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.19 and a beta of 0.73. The business's 50-day moving average price is $14.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. First Bank has a 12 month low of $11.20 and a 12 month high of $15.87.

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $33.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.52 million. First Bank had a net margin of 18.41% and a return on equity of 11.06%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that First Bank will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. First Bank's payout ratio is presently 15.58%.

First Bank Profile

First Bank provides various banking products and services to small to mid-sized businesses and individuals. The company accepts various deposits, including non-interest-bearing demand deposits, interest bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as commercial checking accounts.