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

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 55,300 shares, a growth of 120.3% from the February 13th total of 25,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 25,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.2 days. Currently, 0.7% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First National

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC acquired a new stake in shares of First National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. PL Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $78,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of First National during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $88,000. Salzhauer Michael acquired a new position in First National during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Finally, Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in First National during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $252,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

First National Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FXNC traded up $0.42 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.25. The company had a trading volume of 36,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 25,204. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $24.31 and its 200 day moving average is $22.23. First National has a twelve month low of $14.50 and a twelve month high of $26.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.58 million, a PE ratio of 19.18 and a beta of 0.57.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.155 per share. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. First National’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.