Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $439,000 in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 23,594 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $439,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in FBP. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 31.9% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,681 shares of the bank's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 544 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in First BanCorp. during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its holdings in First BanCorp. by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 60,325 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,121,000 after acquiring an additional 2,042 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its position in First BanCorp. by 21.0% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 16,338 shares of the bank's stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 2,837 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of First BanCorp. from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $20.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $22.40.

Insider Transactions at First BanCorp.

In related news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were 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 approximately $3,656,606.50. The trade was a 5.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

FBP traded up $0.14 on Friday, hitting $17.72. 1,208,436 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,060,728. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.79, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.80. First BanCorp. has a 12 month low of $16.25 and a 12 month high of $22.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $18.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.67.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 prior year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were paid a $0.18 dividend. This is a positive change from First BanCorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.06%. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.78%.

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.