First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) Stock Rating Lowered by Janney Montgomery Scott

Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded shares of First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports.

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

First National Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of FXNC stock opened at $25.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $21.44 and a 200-day moving average of $18.14. 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 12-month low of $14.50 and a 12-month high of $25.51. The company has a market capitalization of $227.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.66 and a beta of 0.53.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First National will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.155 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. This is a boost from First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.36%.

Institutional Trading of First National

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fourthstone LLC lifted its stake in First National by 0.3% in the third quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 627,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,981,000 after acquiring an additional 1,814 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of First National by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 50,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $882,000 after buying an additional 3,789 shares during the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP lifted its stake in shares of First National by 41.3% during the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 35,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $642,000 after buying an additional 10,500 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted 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 buying an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $237,000 after buying an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

About First National

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.