First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) Price Target Raised to $70.00

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) had its price target boosted by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $67.00 to $70.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 8.02% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on FBNC. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on First Bancorp from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Brean Capital assumed coverage on First Bancorp in a research note on Monday, June 8th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $65.75 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on shares of First Bancorp from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Bancorp has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.94.

First Bancorp Stock Up 3.1%

NASDAQ:FBNC traded up $1.93 on Tuesday, reaching $64.80. The stock had a trading volume of 6,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 244,918. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.08 and a 200 day moving average of $59.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.99 and a beta of 0.81. First Bancorp has a 12-month low of $45.96 and a 12-month high of $66.54.

First Bancorp (NASDAQ:FBNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $127.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $126.07 million. First Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 22.12%. On average, research analysts predict that First Bancorp will post 4.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael Goodwin Mayer sold 44,324 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.58, for a total value of $2,596,499.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 41,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,430,542.78. The trade was a 51.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FBNC. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of First Bancorp by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 43,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,749,000 after acquiring an additional 2,781 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $318,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in First Bancorp by 5.1% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $961,000 after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in First Bancorp during the first quarter worth $4,046,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in 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 worth $10,383,000 after purchasing an additional 15,570 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.36% of the company’s stock.

About First Bancorp

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.