Prudential Financial Inc. Has $5.65 Million Stake in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 303,770 shares of the bank's stock after selling 15,230 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.19% of First BanCorp. worth $5,647,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FBP. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP now owns 27,629 shares of the bank's stock worth $514,000 after purchasing an additional 2,976 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in First BanCorp. by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,462,121 shares of the bank's stock worth $398,981,000 after purchasing an additional 63,304 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in First BanCorp. by 128.6% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 41,897 shares of the bank's stock valued at $779,000 after purchasing an additional 23,567 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter valued at $668,000. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in First BanCorp. during the 4th quarter worth $636,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Carlos Power sold 45,797 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.77, for a total transaction of $951,203.69. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 186,543 shares in the company, valued at $3,874,498.11. This trade represents a 19.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

Shares of First BanCorp. stock traded down $0.77 on Friday, reaching $17.10. 1,751,277 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,039,476. 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 market cap of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.12. The firm's 50 day moving average is $19.44 and its 200-day moving average is $19.83. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $16.25 and a one year high of $22.40.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This is an increase from First BanCorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.21%. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio is 39.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.40.

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.