Insider Selling: First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Insider Sells 2,500 Shares of Stock

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) insider Mary Clara Capel sold 2,500 shares of First Bancorp stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.26, for a total transaction of $143,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 28,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,605,684.92. This trade represents a 8.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

First Bancorp Trading Up 1.6%

FBNC stock traded up $0.93 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $57.73. 83,697 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 286,527. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.52 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business has a 50 day moving average of $53.29 and a 200-day moving average of $51.88. First Bancorp has a 52-week low of $34.50 and a 52-week high of $62.31.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $83.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $123.43 million. First Bancorp had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 10.57%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a boost from First Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 15th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of First Bancorp from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBNC. Amalgamated Bank increased its position in shares of First Bancorp by 1.8% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 11,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $632,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN increased its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 0.3% in the third quarter. Martin & Co. Inc. TN now owns 64,808 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,428,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 3.9% in the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 6,277 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its stake in First Bancorp by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 22,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,159,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its holdings in First Bancorp by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 8,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

First Bancorp Company Profile

First Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for First Bank, offering a broad range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its core offerings include business lending, treasury and cash management, residential and commercial mortgage financing, and consumer deposit products. Through its subsidiary, First Bank provides online and branch-based banking solutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificate of deposits, and digital banking tools designed to meet the needs of individuals, small- to mid-sized businesses, and professional institutions.

The company maintains a network of full-service banking centers and loan production offices across North Carolina and South Carolina, with a focus on markets in the Piedmont, Sandhills and coastal regions.