First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Now Covered by Piper Sandler

Analysts at Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Tuesday. The firm set a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. Piper Sandler's price target would indicate a potential upside of 12.83% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on First Bancorp from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of First Bancorp from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded First Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $49.33.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of FBNC traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $42.54. 40,011 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 185,685. The stock's fifty day moving average is $39.43 and its 200 day moving average is $42.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $1.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.12 and a beta of 0.85. First Bancorp has a 1-year low of $29.53 and a 1-year high of $50.34.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.06. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.04% and a net margin of 14.19%. The business had revenue of $105.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $105.81 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of First Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in First Bancorp by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its position in First Bancorp by 3.1% during the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 19,759 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $793,000 after acquiring an additional 601 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 124,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,476,000 after buying an additional 621 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 3.2% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 22,364 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $898,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in First Bancorp by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 81,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,566,000 after buying an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company's stock.

About First Bancorp

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides banking products and services for individuals and small to medium-sized businesses. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts.

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