Barclays PLC Has $6.98 Million Stock Holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Barclays PLC grew its position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 375,327 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 7,882 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.23% of First BanCorp. worth $6,977,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 48.2% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,580 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in First BanCorp. by 31.9% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 542 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in First BanCorp. by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,681 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in First BanCorp. by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 16,935 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 815 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.75, for a total value of $214,160.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 176,222 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,656,606.50. This trade represents a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FBP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised First BanCorp. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $20.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.40.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 0.1 %

First BanCorp. stock opened at $19.57 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $18.60 and a 200-day moving average of $19.56. 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 one year low of $16.40 and a one year high of $22.40.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.03. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 24.37%. On average, equities analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.68%. First BanCorp.’s payout ratio is 39.78%.

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.