First Community Co. (NASDAQ:FCCO) Short Interest Update

First Community Co. (NASDAQ:FCCO - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,000 shares, a drop of 21.6% from the September 30th total of 10,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 18,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.4 days. Currently, 0.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Trading of First Community

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FCCO. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of First Community in the second quarter worth $58,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in First Community during the second quarter valued at $190,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in First Community during the second quarter worth about $261,000. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC lifted its stake in First Community by 0.3% during the second quarter. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC now owns 291,998 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,037,000 after purchasing an additional 975 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Community by 22.1% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 19,474 shares of the bank's stock worth $335,000 after buying an additional 3,525 shares during the period. 61.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Community Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FCCO traded up $0.58 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $23.06. The stock had a trading volume of 3,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 28,129. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.20. First Community has a 12-month low of $15.40 and a 12-month high of $23.96. The stock has a market cap of $175.92 million, a P/E ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 0.41.

First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. First Community had a return on equity of 9.75% and a net margin of 12.99%. The business had revenue of $26.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.65 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.23 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that First Community will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Community Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 29th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 29th. First Community's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised First Community from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 1st.

About First Community

First Community Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First Community Bank that provides various commercial and retail banking products and services to small-to-medium sized businesses, professionals, and individuals. The company operates through Commercial and Retail Banking, Mortgage Banking, and Investment Advisory and Non-Deposit segments.