First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Wednesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $21.50 target price on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of First Commonwealth Financial from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on First Commonwealth Financial from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Commonwealth Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.92.

First Commonwealth Financial Stock Down 2.2 %

FCF stock opened at $15.63 on Wednesday. First Commonwealth Financial has a 52 week low of $12.71 and a 52 week high of $19.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.24 and a beta of 0.77.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The bank reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32. The business had revenue of $118.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $117.70 million. First Commonwealth Financial had a return on equity of 10.36% and a net margin of 20.38%. The business’s revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that First Commonwealth Financial will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Commonwealth Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.135 dividend. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.45%. This is a positive change from First Commonwealth Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.30%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Commonwealth Financial

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in First Commonwealth Financial by 2,911.4% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,379 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 2,300 shares during the period. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 815.8% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 2,839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in First Commonwealth Financial by 56.8% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,388 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,227 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.58% of the company’s stock.

About First Commonwealth Financial

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides various consumer and commercial banking services in the United States. Its consumer services include personal checking accounts, interest-earning checking accounts, savings and health savings accounts, insured money market accounts, debit cards, investment certificates, fixed and variable rate certificates of deposit, mortgage loans, secured and unsecured installment loans, construction and real estate loans, safe deposit facilities, credit cards, credit lines with overdraft checking protection, IRA accounts, and automated teller machine (atm) services, as well as internet, mobile, and telephone banking services.