First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Price Target Raised to $50.00

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by investment analysts at Stephens from $48.00 to $50.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Stephens' target price would suggest a potential upside of 24.05% from the stock's current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of First Bancorp from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded First Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th.

First Bancorp Stock Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ:FBNC traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $40.31. The stock had a trading volume of 23,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 181,208. The company has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a PE ratio of 21.96 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.79. First Bancorp has a twelve month low of $29.53 and a twelve month high of $50.34.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBNC. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in First Bancorp by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,293,843 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $100,862,000 after buying an additional 77,074 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,202,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $96,864,000 after buying an additional 418,752 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 828,369 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $36,423,000 after purchasing an additional 9,140 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 797,316 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,058,000 after purchasing an additional 18,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 372.1% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 742,637 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,654,000 after acquiring an additional 585,338 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company's stock.

First Bancorp Company Profile

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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