Invesco Ltd. Grows Position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,846,692 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 182,754 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 1.13% of First BanCorp. worth $34,330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FBP. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of First BanCorp. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in First BanCorp. by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,580 shares of the bank's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 31.9% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of First BanCorp. during the third quarter worth $66,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 394.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,800 shares of the bank's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 3,032 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Buying and Selling at First BanCorp.

In other news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.75, for a total transaction of $214,160.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 176,222 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,656,606.50. This represents a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

First BanCorp. Trading Up 3.5 %

Shares of NYSE:FBP traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $18.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 862,802 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,071,198. First BanCorp. has a fifty-two week low of $16.40 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. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.31, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 last year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

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.