Intech Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in First BanCorp. $FBP

Intech Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 78.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 148,817 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 528,381 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $3,085,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,467,300 shares of the bank’s stock worth $445,017,000 after acquiring an additional 413,557 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 3.7% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,207,765 shares of the bank’s stock worth $92,781,000 after acquiring an additional 148,822 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 31.6% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 2,284,146 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,365,000 after acquiring an additional 548,164 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 8.5% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,005,383 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,259,000 after acquiring an additional 157,721 shares during the period. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 82.9% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,434,382 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,878,000 after acquiring an additional 649,987 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

NYSE:FBP opened at $23.98 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $23.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $21.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $19.16 and a 12 month high of $24.64.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.05. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 28.31% and a return on equity of 17.51%. The company had revenue of $258.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $263.54 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 28th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 28th. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on FBP shares. Weiss Ratings raised First BanCorp. from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Raymond James Financial raised First BanCorp. from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $26.00 to $27.00 in a report on Monday, April 27th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on First BanCorp. from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.86.

First BanCorp. Profile

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.