Man Group plc Decreases Position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Man Group plc trimmed its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 50.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 98,389 shares of the bank's stock after selling 98,207 shares during the quarter. Man Group plc owned approximately 0.06% of First BanCorp. worth $1,829,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,462,121 shares of the bank's stock valued at $398,981,000 after purchasing an additional 63,304 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,724,074 shares of the bank's stock valued at $125,001,000 after buying an additional 78,129 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in First BanCorp. by 42.8% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,871,338 shares of the bank's stock worth $90,558,000 after acquiring an additional 1,460,789 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in First BanCorp. by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,462,862 shares of the bank's stock worth $82,981,000 after acquiring an additional 76,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,685,588 shares of the bank's stock valued at $49,926,000 after acquiring an additional 248,335 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 1.8%

NYSE:FBP traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $20.60. The company had a trading volume of 905,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,100,647. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $19.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.56. The company has a market capitalization of $3.33 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.93. First BanCorp. has a 52 week low of $16.40 and a 52 week high of $22.40.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.04. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.37% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The firm had revenue of $248.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $243.08 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.44 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. First BanCorp.'s payout ratio is 39.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.80.

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.