First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCBC) Short Interest Update

First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCBC) was the target of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 325,793 shares, a growth of 30.6% from the February 26th total of 249,507 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 79,004 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised First Community Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Institutional Trading of First Community Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FCBC. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in shares of First Community Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of First Community Bancshares in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new stake in First Community Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. City Holding Co. raised its stake in First Community Bancshares by 98.5% in the third quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 1,042 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in First Community Bancshares during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 34.95% of the company’s stock.

First Community Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ FCBC traded down $0.21 on Tuesday, hitting $41.52. The stock had a trading volume of 110,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 77,610. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $39.13 and a 200-day moving average of $35.68. First Community Bancshares has a 52-week low of $31.21 and a 52-week high of $42.79. The company has a market capitalization of $792.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61 and a beta of 0.56.

First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $43.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.20 million. First Community Bancshares had a net margin of 26.32% and a return on equity of 10.17%.

First Community Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. First Community Bancshares’s payout ratio is presently 46.62%.

About First Community Bancshares

First Community Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: FCBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Mebane, North Carolina, that delivers banking and financial services through its wholly owned subsidiary, First Community Bank. The company’s core focus is on relationship-driven community banking, offering clients a blend of personalized service and competitive digital banking capabilities. It serves a diverse clientele that includes individuals, families, small and mid-sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and professional practices.

The bank provides a broad spectrum of deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, alongside treasury management and payment processing solutions.