First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) Share Price Crosses Above 50-Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA - Get Free Report) shares passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $14.32 and traded as high as $15.28. First Bank shares last traded at $15.24, with a volume of 22,519 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Hovde Group upped their price objective on shares of First Bank from $17.00 to $17.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First Bank from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th.

First Bank Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $14.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.52. The firm has a market cap of $281.81 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.62 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $33.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.52 million. First Bank had a net margin of 18.41% and a return on equity of 11.06%. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that First Bank will post 1.78 EPS for the current year.

First Bank Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. First Bank's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bank

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. PL Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in First Bank by 1,307.0% in the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,737,940 shares of the bank's stock valued at $94,803,000 after buying an additional 6,259,053 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in shares of First Bank by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 890,825 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,534,000 after purchasing an additional 26,500 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in First Bank by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 890,493 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,529,000 after acquiring an additional 23,012 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP purchased a new position in First Bank during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,601,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in First Bank by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 220,191 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,261,000 after acquiring an additional 18,969 shares in the last quarter. 64.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Bank

First Bank provides various banking products and services to small to mid-sized businesses and individuals. The company accepts various deposits, including non-interest-bearing demand deposits, interest bearing demand accounts, money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as commercial checking accounts.