Penbrook Management LLC Sells 2,000 Shares of First BanCorp. $FBP

Penbrook Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 3.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,600 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Penbrook Management LLC’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $1,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 103.4% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,383 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 328.8% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,950 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 2,262 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 191.2% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,585 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 2,354 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 19.6% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 4,340 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 711 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on FBP shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group set a $25.00 target price on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First BanCorp. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.30, for a total value of $1,115,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,059,547 shares in the company, valued at $23,627,898.10. This trade represents a 4.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

First BanCorp. stock opened at $21.54 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $21.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.93. First BanCorp. has a fifty-two week low of $16.40 and a fifty-two week high of $22.60.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $246.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $250.73 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.71% and a return on equity of 17.54%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, October 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.30%.

About First BanCorp.

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.