Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in First Bank $FRBA

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) by 1.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 78,677 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 964 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s holdings in First Bank were worth $1,165,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of First Bank during the 1st quarter valued at $469,000. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bank during the 1st quarter valued at $347,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Bank by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 95,139 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,409,000 after buying an additional 6,415 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bank during the 1st quarter valued at $213,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP lifted its stake in shares of First Bank by 21.3% during the 1st quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 53,400 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $791,000 after buying an additional 9,380 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.86% of the company’s stock.

First Bank Stock Down 1.7%

First Bank stock opened at $16.66 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. First Bank has a 1-year low of $12.74 and a 1-year high of $17.40. The company’s 50-day moving average is $15.97 and its 200 day moving average is $15.12.

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.02). First Bank had a return on equity of 9.44% and a net margin of 16.13%.The firm had revenue of $37.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.09 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Bank will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were given a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. First Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 15.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of First Bank from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $17.83.

First Bank Company Profile

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.