Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 3.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 953,755 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 27,658 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.58% of First BanCorp. worth $18,283,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in First BanCorp. during the first quarter worth about $96,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 54.0% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 43,957 shares of the bank's stock worth $843,000 after acquiring an additional 15,412 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 1.9% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 90,641 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,738,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651 shares during the last quarter. Vicus Capital boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 16.2% during the first quarter. Vicus Capital now owns 12,539 shares of the bank's stock worth $240,000 after acquiring an additional 1,752 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 1.7% during the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 42,527 shares of the bank's stock worth $815,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE FBP opened at $21.83 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $20.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.59. The company has a market capitalization of $3.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.93. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $16.40 and a 12 month high of $22.40.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.04. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.46% and a return on equity of 18.22%. The company had revenue of $248.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.08 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.44 EPS. First BanCorp.'s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 29th. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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.

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.

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