TROY, N.C., May 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Board of Directors of First Bancorp (Nasdaq - FBNC), the parent company of First Bank, has declared a cash dividend of $0.08 per share payable July 24, 2009 to shareholders of record as of June 30, 2009. The $0.08 per share dividend rate is the same as the rate declared in the first quarter of 2009 and is a decrease from the $0.19 per share rate declared in the second quarter of 2008.

First Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Troy, North Carolina with total assets of approximately $2.7 billion. Its principal activity is the ownership and operation of First Bank, a state-chartered community bank that operates 75 branches, with 63 branches operating in a 21-county market area in the central piedmont and coastal regions of North Carolina, 7 branches in South Carolina (Cheraw, Dillon, Florence, and Latta), and 5 branches in Virginia (Abingdon, Dublin, Fort Chiswell, Radford, and Wytheville), where First Bank does business as First Bank of Virginia. First Bank also has a loan production office in Blacksburg, Virginia. First Bancorp's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol 'FBNC.'

    Please visit our website at www.FirstBancorp.com.  For additional
    information, please contact:
                Mr. Jerry L. Ocheltree
                President & Chief Executive Officer
                Telephone: (910) 576-6171

SOURCE First Bancorp