186,587 Shares in First Bancorp $FBNC Acquired by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 186,587 shares of First Bancorp in the second quarter, valued at approximately $11.9 million and representing about 0.45% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 68.36% of First Bancorp.
• Analyst sentiment is moderately positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.94. Ratings range from Strong Buy to Sell.
• First Bancorp recently exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.22 in EPS and $127.3 million in revenue, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, representing a 1.5% annualized yield.

Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 186,587 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $11,929,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.45% of First Bancorp as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in First Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $380,347,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,055,000. First Bancorp Inc ME purchased a new position in First Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $25,711,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in First Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $19,779,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC increased its stake in First Bancorp by 176.4% during the first quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 429,818 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $24,220,000 after acquiring an additional 274,289 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on FBNC shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of First Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of First Bancorp from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of First Bancorp from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Brean Capital assumed coverage on shares of First Bancorp in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $65.75 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.94.

First Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of FBNC stock opened at $63.50 on Friday. First Bancorp has a twelve month low of $45.96 and a twelve month high of $66.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.72 and a beta of 0.80.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.07. First Bancorp had a net margin of 22.12% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The company had revenue of $127.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $126.07 million. On average, analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 4.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. First Bancorp's payout ratio is 29.81%.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Southern Pines, North Carolina. Through its principal subsidiary, First Bank, the company provides community banking services to individuals, businesses and institutions.

First Bank offers a range of financial products, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer and commercial loans, residential mortgages, and agricultural lending. Its services also include online and mobile banking, treasury management, wealth management and other financial solutions for business and personal customers.

Founded in 1983, First Bancorp has expanded its banking operations across North Carolina and neighboring markets in South Carolina and Virginia.

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