Kennedy Capital Management LLC Has $1.96 Million Stock Position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 57.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 105,512 shares of the bank's stock after selling 139,997 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of First BanCorp. worth $1,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 926,097 shares of the bank's stock valued at $17,216,000 after buying an additional 37,432 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in First BanCorp. during the fourth quarter worth $4,792,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 52.3% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 61,797 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,149,000 after purchasing an additional 21,213 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of First BanCorp. during the 4th quarter worth $420,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 437,437 shares of the bank's stock worth $8,132,000 after buying an additional 20,256 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised First BanCorp. from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $20.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at First BanCorp.

In related news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.75, for a total value of $214,160.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 176,222 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,656,606.50. The trade was a 5.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of FBP traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $18.24. 1,366,843 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,072,224. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.61. First BanCorp. has a 52 week low of $16.27 and a 52 week high of $22.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.05. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 24.37%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.46 EPS. On average, analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.95%. This is a boost from First BanCorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.78%.

First BanCorp. 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.