Wells Fargo & Company Increases First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) Price Target to $18.00

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) had its price target boosted by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $16.00 to $18.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the bank’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 7.27% from the stock’s current price.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on First BanCorp. from $18.50 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th.

First BanCorp. Stock Performance

Shares of FBP opened at $16.78 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $16.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.71. The stock has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.87, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.16. First BanCorp. has a 12-month low of $10.18 and a 12-month high of $17.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $299.09 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.75 million. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 21.62% and a net margin of 26.19%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that First BanCorp. will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 57,600 shares of First BanCorp. stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.34, for a total value of $998,784.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 98,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,708,007.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Aurelio Aleman sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Mcdonald sold 57,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.34, for a total transaction of $998,784.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 98,501 shares in the company, valued at $1,708,007.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 132,600 shares of company stock valued at $2,278,784 in the last quarter. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First BanCorp.

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 198,317 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,603,000 after buying an additional 25,060 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its position in First BanCorp. by 4.3% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 31,779 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in First BanCorp. by 7.4% during the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 67,649 shares of the bank’s stock worth $893,000 after acquiring an additional 4,683 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First BanCorp. by 42.3% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 99,028 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,299,000 after purchasing an additional 29,444 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its stake in shares of First BanCorp. by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 173,994 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,283,000 after purchasing an additional 18,567 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.91% of the company’s stock.

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.