First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Shares Sold by Greenwood Capital Associates LLC

Greenwood Capital Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 350 shares during the period. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC owned 0.08% of First Bancorp worth $1,151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FBNC. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in First Bancorp by 91.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,245,024 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,078,000 after purchasing an additional 595,695 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $11,720,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of First Bancorp by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,848,591 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $68,418,000 after buying an additional 112,422 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of First Bancorp by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 585,926 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,685,000 after acquiring an additional 73,508 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in First Bancorp by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 179,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,652,000 after acquiring an additional 27,488 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FBNC traded down $0.53 during trading on Friday, reaching $30.02. 92,932 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 120,946. The stock has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.84 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. First Bancorp has a 12-month low of $26.00 and a 12-month high of $38.51.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.03). First Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 20.58%. The company had revenue of $92.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $96.12 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First Bancorp will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Sunday, June 30th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is 31.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com lowered First Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th.

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.