The First Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FNLC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

The First Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FNLC) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 36,900 shares, an increase of 15.7% from the October 31st total of 31,900 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 16,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FNLC. WASHINGTON TRUST Co bought a new position in First Bancorp in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp in the third quarter worth about $37,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $104,000. Means Investment CO. Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in First Bancorp by 7.7% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 16,029 shares of the bank’s stock worth $398,000 after acquiring an additional 1,142 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.41% of the company’s stock.

First Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FNLC traded down $0.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $28.49. 12,105 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,261. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. First Bancorp has a one year low of $21.77 and a one year high of $31.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $317.66 million, a P/E ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $27.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.03.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 8th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.05%. First Bancorp’s payout ratio is 60.76%.

About First Bancorp

The First Bancorp, Inc operates as the holding company for First National Bank that provides a range of banking products and services to individuals and businesses. It offers various deposit products, including demand, NOW, time, savings, money market, and certificates of deposit accounts. The company also provides commercial loans comprising commercial real estate owner occupied, such as mortgage loans to finance investments in real property such as retail space, offices, industrial buildings, hotels, educational facilities, and other specific or mixed use properties; commercial real estate non-owner occupied loans; commercial construction to finance construction in a mix of owner- and nonowner occupied commercial real estate properties; and commercial and industrial loans, including revolving and term loan for financing working capital and/or capital investment.