Bank of America Corp DE Sells 43,277 Shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)

Bank of America Corp DE lowered its holdings in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Free Report) by 21.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 161,391 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 43,277 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.39% of First Bancorp worth $7,096,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,293,843 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $100,862,000 after acquiring an additional 77,074 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in First Bancorp by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,202,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $96,864,000 after acquiring an additional 418,752 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 828,369 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,423,000 after buying an additional 9,140 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 797,316 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,058,000 after buying an additional 18,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 372.1% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 742,637 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,654,000 after purchasing an additional 585,338 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ FBNC traded down $0.04 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $41.65. 22,838 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 183,821. First Bancorp has a 12-month low of $29.53 and a 12-month high of $50.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.63 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $39.90 and a 200 day moving average of $42.55.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $105.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $105.81 million. First Bancorp had a net margin of 14.19% and a return on equity of 8.04%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FBNC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded First Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of First Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 target price on the stock. Stephens raised their price target on shares of First Bancorp from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of First Bancorp from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $49.33.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides banking products and services for individuals and small to medium-sized businesses. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts.