First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) Short Interest Down 10.4% in October

First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) saw a significant decrease in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,030,000 shares, a decrease of 10.4% from the October 15th total of 1,150,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 523,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

First Commonwealth Financial Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE FCF traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $18.45. 115,239 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 516,647. The company’s fifty day moving average is $17.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.76. First Commonwealth Financial has a fifty-two week low of $12.41 and a fifty-two week high of $19.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $1.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 0.83.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The bank reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.05). First Commonwealth Financial had a net margin of 21.87% and a return on equity of 11.19%. The company had revenue of $121.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $119.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that First Commonwealth Financial will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current year.

First Commonwealth Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 35.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on FCF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of First Commonwealth Financial from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on First Commonwealth Financial from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com downgraded First Commonwealth Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $16.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of First Commonwealth Financial from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Commonwealth Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Commonwealth Financial

In other First Commonwealth Financial news, EVP Michael P. Mccuen bought 2,919 shares of First Commonwealth Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $16.99 per share, for a total transaction of $49,593.81. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $979,014.77. This trade represents a 5.34 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Commonwealth Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 29.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,673,201 shares of the bank’s stock worth $23,107,000 after buying an additional 384,892 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,987,929 shares of the bank’s stock worth $96,503,000 after purchasing an additional 233,955 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 121.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 211,797 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,631,000 after purchasing an additional 116,295 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 2.9% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,782,837 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $64,876,000 after buying an additional 105,116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA lifted its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 6.9% in the first quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 960,725 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,373,000 after buying an additional 61,823 shares during the period. 72.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Commonwealth Financial Company Profile

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides various consumer and commercial banking services in the United States. Its consumer services include personal checking accounts, interest-earning checking accounts, savings and health savings accounts, insured money market accounts, debit cards, investment certificates, fixed and variable rate certificates of deposit, mortgage loans, secured and unsecured installment loans, construction and real estate loans, safe deposit facilities, credit cards, credit lines with overdraft checking protection, IRA accounts, and automated teller machine (atm) services, as well as internet, mobile, and telephone banking services.