First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Short Interest Up 120.3% in February

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 55,300 shares, an increase of 120.3% from the February 13th total of 25,100 shares. Currently, 0.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 25,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days.

First National Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of FXNC traded up $0.48 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $22.31. 2,267 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 24,482. The company has a market cap of $200.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.15 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. First National has a 52 week low of $14.50 and a 52 week high of $26.97. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.19.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.19. First National had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 12.09%. On average, equities analysts forecast that First National will post 2.25 EPS for the current year.

First National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.155 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. First National’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on FXNC shares. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded shares of First National from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Hovde Group cut shares of First National from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $28.50 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First National

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FXNC. Fourthstone LLC grew its stake in First National by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 896,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,631,000 after buying an additional 269,124 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. purchased a new position in First National in the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,538,000. Rhino Investment Partners Inc purchased a new position in First National in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,881,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in First National by 71.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 86,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,991,000 after buying an additional 36,090 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PL Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in First National in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,800,000. 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.