First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Short Interest Up 6.6% in September

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 62,800 shares, an increase of 6.6% from the August 31st total of 58,900 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 4,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 15.3 days.

First National Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FXNC opened at $18.03 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $113.17 million, a PE ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $17.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.21. First National has a twelve month low of $14.50 and a twelve month high of $21.75.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $14.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.90 million. First National had a return on equity of 7.29% and a net margin of 10.40%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that First National will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

First National Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a None dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 20th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 20th. First National’s payout ratio is currently 41.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of First National from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $21.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 1st.

Institutional Trading of First National

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in First National by 13.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of First National by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 11,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares during the period. Finally, Cutler Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in First National by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Cutler Capital Management LLC now owns 202,745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

First National Company Profile

First National Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First Bank that provides various commercial banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, individuals, estates, local governmental entities, and non-profit organizations in Virginia. The company's deposit products include checking, savings, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and treasury management solutions.