First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.04, FiscalAI reports. First National had a return on equity of 11.48% and a net margin of 17.94%.The business had revenue of $24.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.45 million.

First National Price Performance

FXNC stock traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $31.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 68,193. First National has a 12 month low of $20.78 and a 12 month high of $31.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $281.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.35 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.87.

First National Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. First National’s payout ratio is currently 29.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First National

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in First National by 59.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of First National by 5,013.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 3,409 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. purchased a new position in shares of First National during the second quarter valued at about $72,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of First National in the second quarter worth about $83,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First National in the fourth quarter worth about $92,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial started coverage on First National in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First National in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

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. Its loan products comprise construction loans, including residential, land acquisition, and development loans; 1-4 family residential real estate loans; and commercial real estate loans that are secured by commercial real estate, including multi-family residential buildings, office and retail buildings, hotels, industrial buildings, and religious facilities.