Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New Investment in First BanCorp. $FBP

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 69,000 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,474,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in First BanCorp. during the fourth quarter worth $1,874,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,407,825 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,043,000 after acquiring an additional 184,769 shares during the period. Novem Group bought a new position in shares of First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,138,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 74.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 128,580 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,665,000 after purchasing an additional 54,713 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of First BanCorp. during the 4th quarter worth about $5,222,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FBP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on First BanCorp. from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on First BanCorp. from $24.50 to $26.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised First BanCorp. from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $26.57.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

NYSE FBP opened at $26.37 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of 11.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $24.57 and a 200-day moving average of $22.69. First BanCorp. has a 52-week low of $19.16 and a 52-week high of $26.94.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $258.64 million for 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 in the prior year, the business earned $0.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 2.25 EPS for the current year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 28th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.56%.

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.