Schroder Investment Management Group Has $27.58 Million Stock Holdings in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)

Schroder Investment Management Group decreased its position in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) by 28.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,486,958 shares of the bank's stock after selling 595,883 shares during the quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group owned 0.91% of First BanCorp. worth $27,583,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FBP. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First BanCorp. during the fourth quarter worth about $35,275,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 267.2% during the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 705,075 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,107,000 after purchasing an additional 513,063 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,193,684 shares of the bank's stock worth $194,630,000 after purchasing an additional 347,271 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,792,000. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in First BanCorp. by 106.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 367,445 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,779,000 after purchasing an additional 189,148 shares during the period. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FBP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of the 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 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. This represents a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

NYSE:FBP traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $16.80. 1,754,796 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,044,007. The company has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $16.25 and a one year high of $22.40. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $19.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.79.

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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The firm 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 4.29%. This is an increase 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 is presently 39.78%.

First BanCorp. Company 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.