Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Buys New Stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 221,079 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $4,110,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of First BanCorp. at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,580 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 31.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,681 shares of the bank's stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 394.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,800 shares of the bank's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 3,032 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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 equities 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, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.80.

First BanCorp. Stock Down 0.4%

First BanCorp. stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $19.99. 1,327,293 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,109,249. The company has a market cap of $3.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.93. First BanCorp. has a twelve month low of $16.40 and a twelve month high of $22.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.35 and a 200-day moving average of $19.54.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $248.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $243.08 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.37% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.13%.

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.