The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Acquires 566 Shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 566 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.05% of First Bancorp worth $668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FBNC. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in First Bancorp in the second quarter worth about $44,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth $185,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $216,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of First Bancorp by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 8,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares during the period. 68.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of First Bancorp from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of First Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th.

Insider Activity at First Bancorp

In other First Bancorp news, Director Suzanne S. Deferie sold 2,036 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.77, for a total transaction of $89,115.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 65,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,872,099.86. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Suzanne S. Deferie sold 17,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.96, for a total transaction of $780,290.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 67,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,974,069.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne S. Deferie sold 2,036 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.77, for a total transaction of $89,115.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 65,618 shares in the company, valued at $2,872,099.86. 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 owned by company insiders.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FBNC opened at $43.52 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a fifty day moving average of $41.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a PE ratio of 15.71 and a beta of 1.03. First Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $26.00 and a fifty-two week high of $45.41.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $143.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.00 million. First Bancorp had a net margin of 20.17% and a return on equity of 8.39%. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Bancorp will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis 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%.

First Bancorp 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.