Millennium Management LLC Acquires 751,413 Shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Millennium Management LLC grew its position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 381.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 948,153 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 751,413 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned approximately 0.58% of First BanCorp. worth $17,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,462,121 shares of the bank's stock worth $398,981,000 after purchasing an additional 63,304 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,724,074 shares of the bank's stock worth $125,001,000 after acquiring an additional 78,129 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 42.8% during the fourth 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 boosted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 1.7% during the fourth 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 boosted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 10.2% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,685,588 shares of the bank's stock worth $49,926,000 after acquiring an additional 248,335 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FBP traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $20.60. 905,748 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,100,647. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The business's fifty day moving average is $19.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.57. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $16.40 and a one year high of $22.40. The stock has a market cap 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. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $248.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $243.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. First BanCorp.'s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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