Banc Funds Co. LLC Sells 1,880 Shares of First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC)

Banc Funds Co. LLC reduced its position in shares of First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) by 1.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 172,291 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,880 shares during the quarter. Banc Funds Co. LLC owned 2.74% of First National worth $3,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of First National in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $88,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of First National by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after acquiring an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of First National by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares during the period. De Lisle Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of First National by 41.3% in the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 35,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $642,000 after purchasing an additional 10,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fourthstone LLC increased its stake in shares of First National by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 627,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,981,000 after purchasing an additional 1,814 shares in the last quarter. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First National Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FXNC opened at $24.82 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $222.64 million, a P/E ratio of 22.16 and a beta of 0.49. First National Co. has a 1-year low of $14.50 and a 1-year high of $24.99. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. First National had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 6.52%. The company had revenue of $20.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.50 EPS. Research analysts expect that First National Co. will post 1.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First National Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.155 dividend. This is a positive change from First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. First National’s dividend payout ratio is 55.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Hovde Group began coverage on First National in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company.

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.