Peregrine Capital Management LLC Buys 27,450 Shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)

Peregrine Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 210,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,450 shares during the quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC owned 0.51% of First Bancorp worth $6,710,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 17,233.3% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 1,551 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in First Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $68,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in First Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $185,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Bancorp

In related news, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total transaction of $30,500.75. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $347,648.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other First Bancorp news, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total transaction of $30,500.75. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $347,648.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mason Y. Garrett sold 22,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.41, for a total transaction of $989,748.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 196,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,526,418.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Bancorp Trading Up 1.1 %

First Bancorp stock traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $42.48. 126,193 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 160,958. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $37.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. First Bancorp has a 52-week low of $26.00 and a 52-week high of $45.41.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $143.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $94.00 million. First Bancorp had a net margin of 20.17% and a return on equity of 8.39%. On average, analysts anticipate that First Bancorp will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 30th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on FBNC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st.

First Bancorp Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides banking products and services for individuals and small to medium-sized businesses. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposits, including certificate of deposits and individual retirement accounts.