Jupiter Topco LLC Invests $1.12 Million in First Bancorp $FBNC

Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 17,567 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of FBNC. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in First Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth $380,347,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,849,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $144,722,000 after buying an additional 11,439 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,012,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $102,661,000 after buying an additional 169,363 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in First Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $45,055,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in First Bancorp by 48.6% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,314,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,516,000 after buying an additional 429,769 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FBNC has been the topic of several research reports. Brean Capital began coverage on First Bancorp in a report on Monday, June 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $65.75 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on First Bancorp from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on First Bancorp from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their target price on First Bancorp from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.94.

First Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of FBNC stock opened at $65.04 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $64.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20 and a beta of 0.80. First Bancorp has a one year low of $45.96 and a one year high of $66.78.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.07. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.12%.The firm had revenue of $127.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $126.07 million. On average, analysts expect that First Bancorp will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank, offering a broad range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its core offerings include business lending, treasury and cash management, residential and commercial mortgage financing, and consumer deposit products. Through its subsidiary, First Bank provides online and branch-based banking solutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and digital banking tools designed to meet the needs of individuals, small- to mid-sized businesses, and professional institutions.

The company maintains a network of full-service banking centers and loan production offices across North Carolina and South Carolina, with a focus on markets in the Piedmont, Sandhills and coastal regions.