First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on FBNC. Piper Sandler cut shares of First Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $64.00 in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Raymond James Financial raised First Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Zacks Research lowered First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.25.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of FBNC stock opened at $56.79 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $56.99 and a 200-day moving average of $53.60. The company has a market cap of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. First Bancorp has a 52 week low of $34.50 and a 52 week high of $62.64.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.16. First Bancorp had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 10.57%. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Bancorp news, insider Mary Clara Capel sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.31, for a total transaction of $296,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,924. This trade represents a 19.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,142 shares of company stock valued at $592,276. Corporate insiders own 3.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FBNC. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 183.6% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in First Bancorp by 2,222.6% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. bought a new stake in shares of First Bancorp in the third quarter valued at $34,000. First Horizon Corp lifted its position in shares of First Bancorp by 83.7% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 777 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank, offering a broad range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its core offerings include business lending, treasury and cash management, residential and commercial mortgage financing, and consumer deposit products. Through its subsidiary, First Bank provides online and branch-based banking solutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and digital banking tools designed to meet the needs of individuals, small- to mid-sized businesses, and professional institutions.

The company maintains a network of full-service banking centers and loan production offices across North Carolina and South Carolina, with a focus on markets in the Piedmont, Sandhills and coastal regions.