Westover Capital Advisors LLC Sells 5,645 Shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Westover Capital Advisors LLC reduced its position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 40,872 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 5,645 shares during the quarter. Westover Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in First BanCorp. were worth $760,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 31.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $66,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 394.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,800 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 3,032 shares in the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First BanCorp. Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of FBP stock opened at $19.57 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a PE ratio of 10.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.14. First BanCorp. has a fifty-two week low of $16.24 and a fifty-two week high of $22.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.81.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.05. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 24.37% and a return on equity of 18.89%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.46 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is an increase from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First BanCorp.

In related news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.75, for a total transaction of $214,160.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 176,222 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,656,606.50. This trade represents a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FBP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First BanCorp. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.40.

First BanCorp. Company Profile

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.