First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Short Interest Update

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,510,000 shares, a decline of 5.6% from the September 15th total of 2,660,000 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,050,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Insider Transactions at First BanCorp.

In other news, COO Donald Kafka sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.81, for a total transaction of $1,090,500.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 174,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,807,786.09. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, COO Donald Kafka sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.81, for a total transaction of $1,090,500.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 174,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,807,786.09. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 7,612 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.65, for a total value of $164,799.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 89,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,943. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 82,452 shares of company stock valued at $1,790,066 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First BanCorp.

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. USA Financial Formulas boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 166.7% during the 3rd quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 3,574 shares of the bank’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 2,234 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 222.6% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,829 shares of the bank’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,952 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 10,000 shares of the bank’s stock worth $212,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 32.8% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 41,331 shares of the bank’s stock worth $875,000 after acquiring an additional 10,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Trust boosted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 15.1% during the 2nd quarter. American Trust now owns 15,586 shares of the bank’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 2,046 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on FBP shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on First BanCorp. in a research report on Monday, August 26th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James started coverage on First BanCorp. in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $21.00 price target on the stock. Hovde Group upped their price target on First BanCorp. from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on First BanCorp. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First BanCorp. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.20.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FBP opened at $21.20 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $20.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.76. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $12.72 and a one year high of $22.12. The company has a market capitalization of $3.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.05. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 21.86% and a net margin of 25.91%. The firm had revenue of $304.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $230.26 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.57%.

First BanCorp. Company 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.