Short Interest in First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) Rises By 10.6%

First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,070,000 shares, an increase of 10.6% from the November 15th total of 967,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 514,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days.

First Commonwealth Financial Trading Up 0.2 %

FCF stock opened at $18.28 on Friday. First Commonwealth Financial has a 52 week low of $12.41 and a 52 week high of $19.96. The company has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35 and a beta of 0.86. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

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

First Commonwealth Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FCF has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of First Commonwealth Financial from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on First Commonwealth Financial from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 cost of $16.99 per share, for a total transaction of $49,593.81. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 57,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $979,014.77. The trade was a 5.34 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Commonwealth Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FCF. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,987,929 shares of the bank’s stock worth $96,503,000 after acquiring an additional 233,955 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 105,116 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in First Commonwealth Financial by 15.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,435,002 shares of the bank’s stock worth $58,601,000 after purchasing an additional 456,119 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $23,107,000 after purchasing an additional 384,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,209,436 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $16,702,000 after purchasing an additional 33,759 shares during the last quarter. 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.