Wells Fargo & Company MN Increases Stock Position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 28.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 98,810 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 22,012 shares during the quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned 0.06% of First BanCorp. worth $1,837,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in First BanCorp. by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,462,121 shares of the bank's stock valued at $398,981,000 after buying an additional 63,304 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,724,074 shares of the bank's stock worth $125,001,000 after buying an additional 78,129 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,462,862 shares of the bank's stock valued at $82,981,000 after purchasing an additional 76,256 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in First BanCorp. during the 4th quarter valued at $35,275,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in First BanCorp. by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 926,097 shares of the bank's stock worth $17,216,000 after acquiring an additional 37,432 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on FBP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on First BanCorp. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First BanCorp. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.80.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 1.2 %

FBP traded up $0.23 on Thursday, hitting $19.87. 74,770 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,243,184. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.81. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $16.40 and a 12 month high of $22.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.54.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $248.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.08 million. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 24.37%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.13%.

Insider Activity at First BanCorp.

In other First BanCorp. news, EVP Carlos Power sold 45,797 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.77, for a total value of $951,203.69. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 186,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,874,498.11. The trade was a 19.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

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.