First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Sunday,Wall Street Zen reports.

FCCO has been the topic of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Community in a report on Friday, July 17th. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on shares of First Community from $36.00 to $37.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, First Community presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $37.50.

First Community Stock Performance

Shares of First Community stock opened at $32.29 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.82. First Community has a one year low of $25.92 and a one year high of $35.74. The company has a market cap of $303.53 million, a PE ratio of 10.95 and a beta of 0.33.

First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.15. First Community had a net margin of 18.32% and a return on equity of 13.23%. The firm had revenue of $25.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.69 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that First Community will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Community Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th were given a $0.17 dividend. This is a boost from First Community’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. First Community’s payout ratio is currently 25.37%.

Insider Activity at First Community

In other First Community news, Director Jane Sosebee acquired 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $33.95 per share, with a total value of $42,437.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $368,527.25. This trade represents a 13.01% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jonathan W. Been sold 14,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.05, for a total value of $503,940.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 120,655 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,108,302.75. This represents a 10.93% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 24,800 shares of company stock valued at $849,140 in the last three months. 8.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Community

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FCCO. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in First Community during the first quarter worth approximately $8,430,000. Maltese Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Community by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Maltese Capital Management LLC now owns 252,500 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,487,000 after purchasing an additional 12,769 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of First Community by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 205,992 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,021,000 after purchasing an additional 20,970 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Community by 31.4% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 125,328 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,663,000 after purchasing an additional 29,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of First Community by 18.2% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 72,464 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,368,000 after buying an additional 11,141 shares during the period. 61.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Community

First Community Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Lexington, South Carolina. Through its principal subsidiary, First Community Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

First Community Bank offers deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate lending, consumer loans, business financing and other credit products. Its services also include online and mobile banking, treasury management, mortgage banking, wealth management and investment services.

Founded in 1995, First Community serves communities across South Carolina through a network of banking offices and digital channels.