First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Short Interest Down 20.4% in March

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 44,000 shares, a decrease of 20.4% from the February 28th total of 55,300 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 26,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Hovde Group cut shares of First National from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $28.50 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

First National Trading Down 5.4 %

Shares of First National stock traded down $1.09 on Friday, hitting $19.20. 20,911 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,358. The company has a fifty day moving average of $24.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.72. First National has a one year low of $14.50 and a one year high of $26.97. The company has a market capitalization of $172.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.19. First National had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 7.51%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First National will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current year.

First National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.155 per share. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. First National's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.45%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First National

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC bought a new position in shares of First National during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. PL Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in First National in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $78,000. Salzhauer Michael bought a new stake in shares of First National during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of First National during the fourth quarter worth approximately $252,000. Finally, Citadel Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of First National in the 4th quarter worth $261,000. 33.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.