First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.06 EPS

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The bank reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.06, Briefing.com reports. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 21.62% and a net margin of 26.19%. The company had revenue of $302.49 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $229.19 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.39 EPS.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

First BanCorp. stock traded up $0.29 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $17.45. 301,435 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,112,501. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $10.18 and a 12 month high of $17.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average of $16.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.92.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This is an increase from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.67%. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio is 37.65%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $18.50 to $19.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Crespo Luz sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.47, for a total value of $164,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 50,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $824,405.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.17, for a total transaction of $858,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,126,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,339,000.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Crespo Luz sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.47, for a total transaction of $164,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 50,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $824,405.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 132,600 shares of company stock worth $2,278,784. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

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.