First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Friday morning.

Separately, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $17.00 price target (down from $18.00) on shares of First Bank in a report on Wednesday, October 30th.

First Bank Stock Down 1.3 %

FRBA stock opened at $14.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.08. First Bank has a 1-year low of $11.20 and a 1-year high of $15.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $14.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.23. The firm has a market cap of $286.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.19 and a beta of 0.94.

First Bank (NASDAQ:FRBA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.06). First Bank had a return on equity of 11.80% and a net margin of 18.19%. The company had revenue of $58.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.96 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that First Bank will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

First Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. First Bank’s payout ratio is 15.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bank

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRBA. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of First Bank by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 124,213 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,582,000 after buying an additional 10,590 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in First Bank during the second quarter worth about $71,000. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in First Bank by 1,377.1% during the second quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 21,935 shares of the bank’s stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 20,450 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC raised its position in First Bank by 14.8% in the second quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 97,650 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,244,000 after acquiring an additional 12,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in First Bank by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 834,690 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,633,000 after acquiring an additional 38,256 shares during the last quarter. 64.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About First Bank

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.