<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in  First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 23,594 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $439,000.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>First BanCorp.</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><p>Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FBP. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of  First BanCorp. during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000.  Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in  First BanCorp. by 31.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,243 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the period.  Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in  First BanCorp. during the 3rd quarter worth $66,000.  Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in  First BanCorp. by 394.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,800 shares of the bank's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 3,032 shares during the last quarter.  Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of  First BanCorp. by 61.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,464 shares of the bank's stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 3,230 shares during the last quarter. 97.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. </p><h2>Insider Activity</h2><p>In other news, EVP Carlos Power sold 10,321 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.75, for a total transaction of $214,160.75. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 176,222 shares in the company, valued at $3,656,606.50. The trade was a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own  2.50% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Analyst Ratings Changes</h2><p>A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FBP. Keefe, Bruyette &amp; Woods raised their price objective on First BanCorp. from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo &amp; Company lowered their price target on shares of First BanCorp. from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus target price of $22.40.</p><p><b>View Our Latest Report on FBP</b></p><h2>First BanCorp. Stock Up 0.7 %</h2><p>Shares of First BanCorp. stock opened at $16.97 on Wednesday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $19.20 and its 200 day moving average is $19.75. First BanCorp. has a one year low of $16.25 and a one year high of $22.40. The firm has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.37, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.80. </p><p>First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.05. First BanCorp. had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 24.37%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.46 EPS.  Equities research analysts anticipate that  First BanCorp. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year. </p><h2>First BanCorp. Increases Dividend</h2><p>The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.24%. This is a boost from First BanCorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date  was Friday, February 21st. First BanCorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.78%. </p><h2>First BanCorp. Company Profile</h2> (Free Report)<p>First BanCorp. operates as a bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico that provides a range of financial products and services to consumers and commercial customers. The company operates through six segments: Commercial and Corporate Banking, Mortgage Banking, Consumer (Retail) Banking, Treasury and Investments, United States Operations, and Virgin Islands Operations.</p><h2>Further Reading</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than First BanCorp.</li><li>Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) What You Need to Know </li><li>Tariff-Proof Stocks: 3 Big Bargains With Huge Upside Potential</li><li>Using the MarketBeat Dividend Yield Calculator</li><li>Qualcomm Breaks Down But RSI Signals It’s Severely Oversold</li><li>How to Calculate Inflation Rate</li><li>Tesla’s #1 Bull Cuts Target But Says It’s Still a Buy</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPUZCUA?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPUZCUA"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in First BanCorp. Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider First BanCorp., you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and First BanCorp. wasn't on the list.</p><p>While First BanCorp. currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>Raymond James Financial Inc. has invested $439,000 in First BanCorp. by acquiring 23,594 shares in the fourth quarter. Other hedge funds have also adjusted their stakes in First BanCorp. Recently, the company reported a quarterly EPS of $0.46, exceeding estimates, and announced a dividend increase to $0.18 per share. The stock has a market cap of $2.78 billion and a current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $22.40.</p>

Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $439,000 in First BanCorp. (NYSE:FBP)