The First Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:FNLC) Short Interest Up 15.7% in November

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FNLC. WASHINGTON TRUST Co purchased a new position in First Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in First Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $104,000. Means Investment CO. Inc. purchased a new stake in First Bancorp in the third quarter worth approximately $226,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,142 shares during the period. 40.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Bancorp Stock Down 0.6 %

First Bancorp stock traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $28.57. The company had a trading volume of 8,534 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,994. First Bancorp has a 12 month low of $21.77 and a 12 month high of $31.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $27.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.96. The company has a market capitalization of $318.61 million, a PE ratio of 12.05 and a beta of 0.56.

First Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 8th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.04%. First Bancorp’s dividend 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.