First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Short Interest Up 37.8% in December

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) saw a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,400,000 shares, an increase of 37.8% from the November 30th total of 3,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,000,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.4 days. Approximately 3.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

First BanCorp. Trading Down 0.7 %

FBP traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $18.55. The stock had a trading volume of 532,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,038,994. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.12. First BanCorp. has a 1-year low of $15.15 and a 1-year high of $22.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.04. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 19.91% and a net margin of 24.94%. The business had revenue of $234.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $238.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FBP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Hovde Group cut their price target on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on First BanCorp. from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First BanCorp. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Nayda Rivera sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.19, for a total transaction of $529,750.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 236,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,011,223.10. This represents a 9.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of First BanCorp.

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,193,684 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $194,630,000 after purchasing an additional 347,271 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management raised its position in First BanCorp. by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,619,842 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $29,627,000 after buying an additional 301,443 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 106.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 367,445 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,779,000 after acquiring an additional 189,148 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the third quarter worth $2,607,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in First BanCorp. by 2.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,386,606 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $92,879,000 after purchasing an additional 112,432 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.