First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Director Mary Clara Capel Sells 1,015 Shares of Stock

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

First Bancorp Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of First Bancorp stock opened at $31.92 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. First Bancorp has a 12-month low of $26.00 and a 12-month high of $38.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.70.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.03). First Bancorp had a net margin of 20.58% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The company had revenue of $92.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $96.12 million. Analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 2.5 EPS for the current year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 30th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 31.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th.

Institutional Trading of First Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in First Bancorp by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in First Bancorp by 1.2% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 33,399 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lifted its holdings in First Bancorp by 1.4% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 35,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in First Bancorp by 7.4% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 8,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in First Bancorp by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 16,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.