First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Short Interest Up 251.4% in December

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 25,300 shares, an increase of 251.4% from the December 15th total of 7,200 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 18,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Institutional Trading of First National

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of First National during the 3rd quarter valued at about $88,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in First National by 13.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted 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 last quarter. Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of First National during the 4th quarter worth $252,000. Finally, De Lisle Partners LLP grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 10,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

First National Stock Performance

FXNC stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $22.62. 7,534 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,754. The firm has a market cap of $202.90 million, a PE ratio of 20.20 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. First National has a 1-year low of $14.50 and a 1-year high of $26.00. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $23.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.88.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting 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 the consensus estimate of $14.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that First National will post 1.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.155 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This is a boost from First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on FXNC. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded First National from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on shares of 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.