Short Interest in First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Grows By 251.4%

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 25,300 shares, an increase of 251.4% from the December 15th total of 7,200 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 18,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First National

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new stake in shares of First National in the 3rd quarter worth about $88,000. Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in First National in the fourth quarter valued at about $252,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in First National by 5.2% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,530 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in 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, De Lisle Partners LLP grew its position in shares of First National by 41.3% in the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 35,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 10,500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

First National Trading Up 0.1 %

FXNC traded up $0.02 on Tuesday, reaching $22.62. 7,534 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,754. The company has a market cap of $202.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. First National has a twelve month low of $14.50 and a twelve month high of $26.00. The company’s 50 day moving average is $23.87 and its 200-day moving average is $19.88.

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

First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.155 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This is an increase from First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. First National’s dividend payout ratio is 55.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on FXNC shares. Hovde Group started coverage on First National in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company. Janney Montgomery Scott cut First National from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

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.