First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Director Sells $780,290.00 in Stock

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Director Suzanne S. Deferie sold 17,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.96, for a total value of $780,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 67,654 shares in the company, valued at $2,974,069.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

First Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of FBNC opened at $41.41 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $41.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.55. The company has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.95 and a beta of 1.03. First Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $26.00 and a fifty-two week high of $45.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $143.42 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.00 million. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.39% and a net margin of 20.17%. Research analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is 31.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FBNC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 7th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bancorp

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in First Bancorp by 91.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,245,024 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,078,000 after buying an additional 595,695 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 77.7% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,041,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,613,000 after acquiring an additional 455,406 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,720,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of First Bancorp by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,104,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,166,000 after acquiring an additional 136,002 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 18.4% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 802,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,615,000 after purchasing an additional 124,992 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Bancorp Company 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.