Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Has $2.83 Million Stake in First Bancorp $FBNC

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its holdings in First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 53,522 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,284 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in First Bancorp were worth $2,831,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in First Bancorp by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 884,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,001,000 after purchasing an additional 101,529 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 32.1% in the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 587,061 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,884,000 after buying an additional 142,765 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new stake in shares of First Bancorp in the second quarter valued at $17,999,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 6.4% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 258,671 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,383,000 after buying an additional 15,570 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in First Bancorp by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 141,199 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,225,000 after buying an additional 10,078 shares in the last quarter. 68.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

First Bancorp Trading Up 2.2%

FBNC opened at $58.06 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.93. First Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $34.50 and a fifty-two week high of $62.31. The company has a market cap of $2.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.66 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last released its 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $123.43 million. First Bancorp had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 10.57%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current year.

First Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.24 dividend. 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%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Bancorp news, insider Mary Clara Capel sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.65% of the company’s stock.

First Bancorp 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.