First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Director Purchases $17,200.00 in Stock

First National Co. (NASDAQ:FXNC) Director Gerald F. Smith, Jr. purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $17.20 per share, for a total transaction of $17,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $208,360.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

First National Stock Performance

FXNC traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $16.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,561. First National Co. has a fifty-two week low of $13.13 and a fifty-two week high of $19.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.38 million, a PE ratio of 6.17 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.25.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56. The firm had revenue of $17.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.10 million. First National had a return on equity of 15.35% and a net margin of 24.70%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that First National Co. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

First National Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 25th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 24th. First National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.73%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First National

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BHZ Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of First National by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. BHZ Capital Management LP now owns 25,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,000 after acquiring an additional 3,924 shares in the last quarter. Petiole USA ltd raised its holdings in shares of First National by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Petiole USA ltd now owns 311,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,335,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First National during the fourth quarter worth $325,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of First National by 9.4% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 20,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $314,000 after acquiring an additional 1,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC bought a new position in First National during the second quarter valued at about $295,000. 42.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott cut First National from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $19.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, September 12th. They noted that the move was a valuation call.

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.