Millennium Management LLC Purchases 580,489 Shares of First BanCorp. $FBP

Key Points

• Millennium Management LLC has increased its stake in First BanCorp. by 61.2%, now owning 1,528,642 shares worth approximately $29.3 million.
• Insider trading details reveal CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares for $1.11 million, reducing his ownership by 4.51% to about $23.6 million.
• First BanCorp. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 per share, which will be paid on September 12th, reflecting an annualized yield of 3.3%.

Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 61.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,528,642 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 580,489 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned about 0.94% of First BanCorp. worth $29,304,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in First BanCorp. by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 96,368 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,847,000 after acquiring an additional 4,236 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 9.6% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,323,936 shares of the bank's stock valued at $25,380,000 after purchasing an additional 115,674 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 18.6% in the first quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 159,500 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,058,000 after purchasing an additional 25,000 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 0.7% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 6,508,647 shares of the bank's stock valued at $124,771,000 after purchasing an additional 48,301 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 8.7% in the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 80,022 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,534,000 after purchasing an additional 6,400 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 increased 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First BanCorp. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.00.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

NYSE FBP traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $21.73. 643,733 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 906,836. First BanCorp. has a 1 year low of $16.40 and a 1 year high of $22.60. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $21.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.97.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $246.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $250.73 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.71% and a return on equity of 17.54%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 28th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 28th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First BanCorp.

In other news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of First BanCorp. 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,059,547 shares in the company, valued at $23,627,898.10. This trade represents a 4.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is owned by 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.