Novem Group Takes $1.14 Million Position in First BanCorp. $FBP

Key Points

• Novem Group acquired 54,891 shares of First BanCorp. (FBP) in Q4, a stake valued at about $1.14 million per its latest 13F filing.
• Institutions dominate ownership: 97.91% of FBP is held by institutional investors, with firms like Principal, Citigroup and JPMorgan materially increasing positions (JPMorgan now holds ~1.41M shares worth ~$31M).
• Analysts and fundamentals look constructive: FBP has an average analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $24.75 price target, recently beat Q4 EPS estimates ($0.55 vs. $0.52) and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.20 (annualized $0.80, ~3.4% yield).

Novem Group acquired a new stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 54,891 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,138,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 14.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 910,845 shares of the bank's stock valued at $20,084,000 after purchasing an additional 114,931 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in First BanCorp. by 48.3% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 402,890 shares of the bank's stock worth $8,884,000 after acquiring an additional 131,293 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its position in First BanCorp. by 191.9% during the third quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 40,723 shares of the bank's stock worth $898,000 after acquiring an additional 26,772 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in First BanCorp. by 11.7% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 697,827 shares of the bank's stock worth $15,387,000 after acquiring an additional 73,168 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in First BanCorp. by 15.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,407,825 shares of the bank's stock worth $31,043,000 after acquiring an additional 184,769 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on FBP. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $24.00 price target (up from $23.00) on shares of First BanCorp. in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Hovde Group raised their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of First BanCorp. in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $24.50 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 34,122 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.11, for a total transaction of $754,437.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 62,937 shares in the company, valued at $1,391,537.07. This represents a 35.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Roberto R. Herencia sold 4,723 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.63, for a total transaction of $106,881.49. Following the transaction, the director owned 637,019 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,415,739.97. This represents a 0.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

FBP stock opened at $23.50 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $17.85 and a 12 month high of $23.62. The firm has a market cap of $3.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.83. The company's 50-day moving average price is $21.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.19.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.03. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 27.48% and a return on equity of 17.33%. The firm had revenue of $257.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $256.18 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. This is a positive change from First BanCorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.21%.

About First BanCorp.

First BanCorp NYSE: FBP is a financial holding company headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Through its principal banking subsidiary, FirstBank Puerto Rico, the company offers a comprehensive range of banking services including commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, cash management solutions and treasury services. It also provides mortgage origination and servicing, equipment leasing, investment management, and insurance agency services.

In its commercial banking segment, First BanCorp serves small and midsize enterprises as well as large corporate clients, delivering tailored credit facilities, letters of credit, and foreign trade financing.

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