15,059 Shares in First BanCorp. $FBP Bought by Ieq Capital LLC

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC invested approximately $289,000 in First BanCorp., acquiring 15,059 shares, according to their recent SEC filing.
• First BanCorp. reported earnings of $0.50 per share, exceeding expectations, with a current yield of 3.3% based on a recently announced dividend of $0.18.
• Analysts have upgraded First BanCorp.'s stock, with Wells Fargo increasing the price target from $22.00 to $25.00 and rating it as "overweight."

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 15,059 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $289,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FBP. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $439,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 25.3% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 260,512 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,843,000 after purchasing an additional 52,540 shares in the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $905,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,671,029 shares of the bank's stock worth $31,064,000 after purchasing an additional 50,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 61.9% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 134,500 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,500,000 after purchasing an additional 51,400 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Stock Up 0.8%

FBP traded up $0.18 on Wednesday, reaching $21.93. 259,388 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,172,079. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $21.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.12. First BanCorp. has a 52-week low of $16.40 and a 52-week high of $22.60. The company has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.97. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $250.73 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First BanCorp. news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.30, for a total value of $1,115,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,059,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,627,898.10. The trade was a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

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.