First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Shares Acquired by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Free Report) by 43.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 149,661 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 45,052 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.36% of First Bancorp worth $6,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in First Bancorp by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in First Bancorp by 82.3% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 587 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in First Bancorp by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 124,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,476,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its position in First Bancorp by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 81,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,566,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR increased its position in First Bancorp by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 7,428 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FBNC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of First Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of First Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

First Bancorp Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of First Bancorp stock traded up $1.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $39.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,346 shares, compared to its average volume of 179,832. First Bancorp has a 1-year low of $29.53 and a 1-year high of $50.34. The business has a fifty day moving average of $39.62 and a 200 day moving average of $42.82. The company has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a PE ratio of 21.44 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.04. First Bancorp had a net margin of 14.19% and a return on equity of 8.04%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Bancorp will post 3.27 EPS for the current year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. First Bancorp's payout ratio is 47.83%.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides banking products and services for individuals and small to medium-sized businesses. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts.