Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Cuts Stock Holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV decreased its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 12.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,520 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,456 shares during the quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,462,121 shares of the bank’s stock worth $398,981,000 after purchasing an additional 63,304 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,724,074 shares of the bank’s stock worth $125,001,000 after purchasing an additional 78,129 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in First BanCorp. by 42.8% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,871,338 shares of the bank’s stock worth $90,558,000 after buying an additional 1,460,789 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in First BanCorp. by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,462,862 shares of the bank’s stock worth $82,981,000 after buying an additional 76,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in First BanCorp. by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,685,588 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,926,000 after buying an additional 248,335 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

NYSE:FBP opened at $20.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.80. First BanCorp. has a 1-year low of $16.40 and a 1-year high of $22.40. The business has a 50 day moving average of $18.96 and a 200 day moving average of $19.56. The company has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.57, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.93.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.04. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 24.37%. The firm had revenue of $248.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $243.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.44 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 29th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is currently 39.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on FBP shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on First BanCorp. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.80.

First BanCorp. 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.