First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $41.51, but opened at $40.67. First Bancorp shares last traded at $41.64, with a volume of 27,665 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on FBNC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on First Bancorp from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered First Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th.

First Bancorp Stock Up 0.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $42.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 22.70 and a beta of 1.04.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.04. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.04% and a net margin of 14.19%. Analysts forecast that First Bancorp will post 3.27 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, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.83%.

Institutional Trading of First Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in First Bancorp by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,293,843 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $100,862,000 after purchasing an additional 77,074 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in First Bancorp by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,202,960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $96,864,000 after buying an additional 418,752 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 976,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,628,000 after buying an additional 12,922 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 828,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,423,000 after buying an additional 9,140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 797,316 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,058,000 after acquiring an additional 18,749 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

About First Bancorp

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.