Vest Financial LLC Increases Position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 26.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 166,626 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 34,346 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC owned about 0.10% of First BanCorp. worth $3,194,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in First BanCorp. by 48.2% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,580 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in First BanCorp. by 31.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its position in First BanCorp. by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,681 shares of the bank's stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in First BanCorp. by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 12,637 shares of the bank's stock worth $235,000 after purchasing an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 16,935 shares of the bank's stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 815 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on First BanCorp. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.80.

First BanCorp. Stock Up 1.6%

FBP opened at $20.19 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.94. The business's 50-day moving average price is $19.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $248.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.08 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.37% and a return on equity of 18.89%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.13%.

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.

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