Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Decreases Stake in First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) by 98.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,807,266 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of First Bancorp worth $672,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBNC. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in First Bancorp by 17,233.3% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,551 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancorp during the first quarter worth $185,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the period. Finally, Novare Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancorp in the second quarter valued at $216,000. Institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, September 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

First Bancorp Stock Down 2.1 %

FBNC opened at $43.62 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.75 and a beta of 1.03. First Bancorp has a one year low of $26.00 and a one year high of $45.41. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $40.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

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

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. First Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.77%.

Insider Activity at First Bancorp

In other First Bancorp news, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total value of $30,500.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $347,648.45. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other First Bancorp news, Director Mary Clara Capel sold 1,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.05, for a total transaction of $30,500.75. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,569 shares in the company, valued at $347,648.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mason Y. Garrett sold 22,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.41, for a total value 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. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Bancorp Company Profile

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.