Bridgeway Capital Management LLC Buys 25,000 Shares of First BanCorp. $FBP

Key Points

• Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in First BanCorp. by 18.6%, owning 159,500 shares after acquiring an additional 25,000 shares during the first quarter.
• First BanCorp. recently reported $0.50 EPS, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.3%.
• Wells Fargo upgraded First BanCorp.'s price target from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 18.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 159,500 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 25,000 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC owned 0.10% of First BanCorp. worth $3,058,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FBP. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 12,191 shares of the bank's stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC grew its position in First BanCorp. by 1.7% in the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 42,527 shares of the bank's stock valued at $815,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in First BanCorp. by 103.4% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,383 shares of the bank's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in First BanCorp. by 19.6% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,340 shares of the bank's stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 711 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in First BanCorp. by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 12,637 shares of the bank's stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Insider Transactions at First BanCorp.

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

First BanCorp. Trading Down 0.8%

FBP traded down $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $21.72. 1,027,439 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,177,353. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $16.40 and a one year high of $22.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.49 billion, a PE ratio of 11.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $21.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.12.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.71% and a return on equity of 17.54%. The firm had revenue of $246.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.73 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. 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%.

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.