Xponance Inc. Acquires 2,086 Shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 9.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 23,361 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,086 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $427,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FBP. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 2,172.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,039,557 shares of the bank’s stock worth $17,101,000 after purchasing an additional 993,819 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in First BanCorp. during the 1st quarter worth $16,719,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in First BanCorp. by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,414,701 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $393,154,000 after acquiring an additional 448,845 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management lifted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 22.9% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,619,842 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $29,627,000 after acquiring an additional 301,443 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 55.8% during the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 656,855 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,014,000 after purchasing an additional 235,156 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 1,944 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.51, for a total transaction of $41,815.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 87,476 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,881,608.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 1,944 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.51, for a total value of $41,815.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 87,476 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,881,608.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Carlos Power sold 22,896 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.53, for a total value of $492,950.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 232,340 shares in the company, valued at $5,002,280.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 82,452 shares of company stock valued at $1,790,066 in the last ninety days. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

Shares of First BanCorp. stock opened at $21.17 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $20.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.10. First BanCorp. has a fifty-two week low of $12.72 and a fifty-two week high of $22.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $304.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $230.26 million. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 21.86% and a net margin of 25.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were paid a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 29th. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on FBP shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of First BanCorp. in a research report on Monday, August 26th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Hovde Group raised their target price on First BanCorp. from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on First BanCorp. in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $21.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, First BanCorp. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.83.

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.