First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th.

First Bancorp Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of FBNC stock opened at $41.35 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $1.70 billion, a PE ratio of 14.93 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a 50-day moving average of $41.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.07. First Bancorp has a 1-year low of $26.00 and a 1-year high of $45.41.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Suzanne S. Deferie sold 17,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 67,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,974,069.84. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Suzanne S. Deferie sold 17,750 shares of First Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 67,654 shares in the company, valued at $2,974,069.84. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mason Y. Garrett sold 22,800 shares of First Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.41, for a total transaction of $989,748.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 196,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,526,418.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 42,586 shares of company stock valued at $1,859,154. 3.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBNC. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 77.7% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,041,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,613,000 after purchasing an additional 455,406 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 6.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,104,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,166,000 after purchasing an additional 136,002 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 18.4% during the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 802,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,615,000 after purchasing an additional 124,992 shares in the last quarter. American National Bank & Trust Co. VA acquired a new stake in First Bancorp during the first quarter worth approximately $4,071,000. Finally, Smith Salley Wealth Management acquired a new stake in First Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $3,568,000. Hedge funds and other 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.