First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) Downgraded to Market Perform Rating by Hovde Group

Hovde Group cut shares of First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research note released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $28.50 target price on the stock.

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott lowered First National from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

First National Stock Performance

First National stock opened at $26.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $235.91 million, a PE ratio of 22.67 and a beta of 0.54. First National has a 12 month low of $14.50 and a 12 month high of $26.97. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $24.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.08.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts expect that First National will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First National

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in First National by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $325,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in First National by 13.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after purchasing an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First National by 0.3% during the third quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 627,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,981,000 after buying an additional 1,814 shares during the last quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of First National during the fourth quarter worth approximately $78,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First National by 8.1% during the third 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. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.