Alliancebernstein L.P. Increases Stock Position in First BanCorp. $FBP

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in First BanCorp. by 0.7%, owning over 6.5 million shares valued at approximately $124.8 million.
• Wells Fargo raised its target price for First BanCorp. shares from $22.00 to $25.00, maintaining an "overweight" rating.
• First BanCorp. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share with a yield of 3.2% to be paid on September 12th.

Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 0.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,508,647 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 48,301 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 3.99% of First BanCorp. worth $124,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FBP. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 3.0% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,925,748 shares of the bank's stock worth $132,767,000 after purchasing an additional 201,674 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,770,605 shares of the bank's stock worth $53,113,000 after buying an additional 85,017 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,622,843 shares of the bank's stock worth $48,759,000 after acquiring an additional 248,272 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its position in First BanCorp. by 1.4% during the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,761,893 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,775,000 after acquiring an additional 24,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,671,029 shares of the bank's stock valued at $31,064,000 after acquiring an additional 50,091 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:FBP traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $21.86. 142,557 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,171,399. The company's 50 day moving average price is $21.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.12. The firm has a market cap of $3.51 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.97. First BanCorp. has a 52 week low of $16.40 and a 52 week high of $22.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $246.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $250.73 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.71% and a return on equity of 17.54%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 28th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 28th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First BanCorp. news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.30, for a total transaction of $1,115,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,059,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,627,898.10. This trade represents a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First BanCorp. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.00.

About First BanCorp.

First BanCorp. operates as a bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. The company operates through six segments: Commercial and Corporate Banking, Mortgage Banking, Consumer (Retail) Banking, Treasury and Investments, United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations.