First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Now Covered by Analysts at Stephens

Equities research analysts at Stephens started coverage on shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) in a report issued on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $48.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Stephens’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 16.67% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on FBNC. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of First Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on First Bancorp from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

First Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of First Bancorp stock opened at $41.14 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. First Bancorp has a 1-year low of $29.53 and a 1-year high of $50.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.34 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.36 and a beta of 1.04.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in First Bancorp by 82.3% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 587 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 807.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 76.0% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salem Investment Counselors Inc. lifted its position in First Bancorp by 157.3% during the 4th quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 3,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,000 after buying an additional 2,171 shares in the last quarter. 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.