First BanCorp. $FBP Shares Sold by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 187,222 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 7,300 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.12% of First BanCorp. worth $3,900,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in First BanCorp. in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,344,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in First BanCorp. in the first quarter valued at $15,963,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 61.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,528,642 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,304,000 after acquiring an additional 580,489 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 1,445.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 430,329 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,249,000 after buying an additional 402,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 490.6% during the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 297,662 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,200,000 after purchasing an additional 247,262 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on FBP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price (down from $26.00) on shares of First BanCorp. in a report on Monday, October 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 27th. UBS Group set a $25.00 target price on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First BanCorp. in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.00.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of First BanCorp. stock opened at $20.13 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.01. First BanCorp. has a 52-week low of $16.40 and a 52-week high of $22.60. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $30.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $256.25 million. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 17.45% and a net margin of 26.73%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th will be given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 28th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.95%.

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.