First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Short Interest Down 5.6% in November

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,700 shares, a decrease of 5.6% from the October 31st total of 7,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 10,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.7 days. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

First National Stock Performance

Shares of FXNC stock opened at $25.02 on Tuesday. First National has a 12 month low of $14.50 and a 12 month high of $25.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $224.43 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.54 and a beta of 0.49. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $20.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.91.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. The company had revenue of $20.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 million. First National had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 6.52%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.50 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that First National will post 1.86 EPS for the current year.

First National Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.155 dividend. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This is a positive change from First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. First National’s payout ratio is 55.36%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First National

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FXNC. De Lisle Partners LLP boosted its holdings in First National by 41.3% in the third quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 35,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $642,000 after acquiring an additional 10,500 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in shares of First National in the 3rd quarter valued at $88,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position 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 period. Fourthstone LLC raised its stake in 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. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in First National by 13.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 1,595 shares during the period. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.