First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Sets New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• First Bancorp reached a new 52-week high after Stephens upgraded its price target from $53.00 to $57.00, trading at $51.01.
• The company has a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average target price of $52.67, with various analysts providing mixed ratings.
• First Bancorp will pay a $0.18 quarterly dividend to shareholders, indicating a 1.41% yield and a payout ratio of 39.32%.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Stephens raised their price target on the stock from $53.00 to $57.00. Stephens currently has an overweight rating on the stock. First Bancorp traded as high as $51.58 and last traded at $51.01, with a volume of 93699 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.13.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on First Bancorp from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Bancorp from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler assumed coverage on First Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in First Bancorp by 52.2% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 35,579 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 12,202 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in First Bancorp by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in First Bancorp by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 37,423 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,645,000 after purchasing an additional 4,789 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in First Bancorp by 163.2% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 25,510 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,122,000 after purchasing an additional 15,819 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in First Bancorp during the first quarter valued at approximately $546,000. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a PE ratio of 21.41 and a beta of 0.87.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.05. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.96% and a net margin of 17.65%. The firm had revenue of $111.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.22 million. Equities research analysts expect that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 28th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. First Bancorp's payout ratio is 39.32%.

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.