First BanCorp. (FBP) Scheduled to Post Quarterly Earnings on Tuesday

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) will be issuing its quarterly earnings data before the market opens on Tuesday, April 23rd. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.39 per share for the quarter. Parties interested in registering for the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.14. First BanCorp. had a net margin of 26.19% and a return on equity of 21.62%. The firm had revenue of $299.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $227.75 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect First BanCorp. to post $2 EPS for the current fiscal year and $2 EPS for the next fiscal year.

First BanCorp. Price Performance

FBP stock opened at $16.91 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $16.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.87. First BanCorp. has a 52-week low of $10.18 and a 52-week high of $17.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.95, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76.

First BanCorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. This is a positive change from First BanCorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. First BanCorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.65%.

Insider Activity at First BanCorp.

In related news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.17, for a total transaction of $858,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,126,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,339,000.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other First BanCorp. news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.17, for a total value of $858,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,126,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,339,000.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Crespo Luz sold 10,000 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.47, for a total transaction of $164,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 50,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $824,405.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 132,600 shares of company stock valued at $2,278,784 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First BanCorp.

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. West Tower Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 32.4% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,863 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 56.1% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 4,296 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 1,544 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of First BanCorp. by 151.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 9,453 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 5,695 shares during the period. Finally, Shay Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of First BanCorp. during the 1st quarter valued at $131,000. Institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on FBP. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of First BanCorp. from $18.50 to $19.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th.

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.