Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Cuts Stock Holdings in First BanCorp. $FBP

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp trimmed its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 56.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 154,741 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 197,868 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $3,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in First BanCorp. by 4.1% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,013 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $287,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,806 shares of the bank’s stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 526 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 151,294 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,151,000 after buying an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 14,217 shares of the bank’s stock worth $313,000 after buying an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 4,785 shares of the bank’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised shares of First BanCorp. from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First BanCorp. in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.86.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

First BanCorp. stock opened at $24.35 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of 10.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. First BanCorp. has a 12-month low of $19.16 and a 12-month high of $24.51.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $258.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $263.54 million. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 28.31% and a return on equity of 17.51%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 2.21 EPS for the current year.

First BanCorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 28th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 28th. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Roberto R. Herencia sold 4,723 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.63, for a total value of $106,881.49. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 637,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,415,739.97. This trade represents a 0.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

About First BanCorp.

First BanCorp (NYSE: FBP) is a financial holding company headquartered in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Through its principal banking subsidiary, FirstBank Puerto Rico, the company offers a comprehensive range of banking services including commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, cash management solutions and treasury services. It also provides mortgage origination and servicing, equipment leasing, investment management, and insurance agency services.

In its commercial banking segment, First BanCorp serves small and midsize enterprises as well as large corporate clients, delivering tailored credit facilities, letters of credit, and foreign trade financing.