Martingale Asset Management L P Sells 33,954 Shares of First BanCorp. $FBP

Key Points

• Martingale Asset Management significantly reduced its stake in First BanCorp. by 32.1%, selling 33,954 shares and holding 71,903 shares valued at $1,378,000.
• Despite the sell-off by Martingale, institutional interest in First BanCorp. remains strong, with several investors like Allspring Global Investments increasing their holdings.
• Wells Fargo raised its price target for First BanCorp. to $25.00 and analysts generally rate the stock as a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $24.00.

Martingale Asset Management L P reduced its stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 32.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 71,903 shares of the bank's stock after selling 33,954 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P's holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $1,378,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in First BanCorp. by 103.4% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,383 shares of the bank's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 19.6% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,340 shares of the bank's stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 711 shares during the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First BanCorp. during the first quarter valued at approximately $96,000. Perkins Coie Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 10.0% during the first quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 11,000 shares of the bank's stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GTS Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of First BanCorp. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $218,000. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

First BanCorp. stock traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $22.31. The stock had a trading volume of 125,581 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,179,155. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.96. 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 firm's 50 day moving average is $21.31 and its 200 day moving average is $20.03. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $16.40 and a one year high of $22.60.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.03. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.71% and a return on equity of 17.54%. The business had revenue of $246.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $250.73 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 28th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 28th. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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 analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $24.00.

First BanCorp. 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.