Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Purchases Shares of 18,400 First Bancorp $FBNC

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNCFree Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 18,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,037,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in First Bancorp by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,849,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $144,722,000 after buying an additional 11,439 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in First Bancorp by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,012,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,661,000 after buying an additional 169,363 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in First Bancorp by 48.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,314,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $69,516,000 after acquiring an additional 429,769 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in First Bancorp by 20.4% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 726,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,892,000 after acquiring an additional 123,283 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 576,596 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,502,000 after acquiring an additional 163,026 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on FBNC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of First Bancorp from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Zacks Research raised shares of First Bancorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Brean Capital started coverage on First Bancorp in a research report on Monday, June 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $65.75 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded First Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.95.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on First Bancorp

First Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ FBNC opened at $63.80 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.77 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $59.96 and a 200 day moving average of $57.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. First Bancorp has a twelve month low of $45.04 and a twelve month high of $66.06.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNCGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $122.29 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $123.20 million. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.86% and a net margin of 20.59%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Bancorp will post 4.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.76%.

Insider Transactions at First Bancorp

In related news, Director Michael Goodwin Mayer sold 44,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.58, for a total value of $2,596,499.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 41,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,430,542.78. The trade was a 51.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

First Bancorp Profile

(Free Report)

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank, offering a broad range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its core offerings include business lending, treasury and cash management, residential and commercial mortgage financing, and consumer deposit products. Through its subsidiary, First Bank provides online and branch-based banking solutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and digital banking tools designed to meet the needs of individuals, small- to mid-sized businesses, and professional institutions.

The company maintains a network of full-service banking centers and loan production offices across North Carolina and South Carolina, with a focus on markets in the Piedmont, Sandhills and coastal regions.

Further Reading

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)

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