First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened
by Doug Wharley · The Cerbat GemFirst Commonwealth Financial Corporation (NYSE:FCF – Get Free Report)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $18.40 and last traded at $18.3650, with a volume of 135098 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $18.11.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of brokerages recently issued reports on FCF. Raymond James Financial set a $20.00 price objective on First Commonwealth Financial and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. DA Davidson cut shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research cut shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Commonwealth Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.92.
Check Out Our Latest Report on First Commonwealth Financial
First Commonwealth Financial Trading Up 1.3%
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $16.83 and a 200-day moving average of $16.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29 and a beta of 0.79.
First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The bank reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). First Commonwealth Financial had a net margin of 20.00% and a return on equity of 10.12%. The company had revenue of $135.98 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $136.30 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.31 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Commonwealth Financial Corporation will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.
First Commonwealth Financial Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were issued a dividend of $0.135 per share. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.13%.
First Commonwealth Financial announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, December 1st that allows the company to repurchase $25.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the bank to purchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Insider Transactions at First Commonwealth Financial
In other First Commonwealth Financial news, EVP Michael P. Mccuen acquired 3,090 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $16.19 per share, for a total transaction of $50,027.10. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 62,111 shares in the company, valued at $1,005,577.09. This represents a 5.24% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO James R. Reske sold 2,072 shares of First Commonwealth Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.74, for a total value of $34,685.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 80,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,344,406.14. This represents a 2.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,555 shares of company stock worth $90,752. 2.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Commonwealth Financial
Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in First Commonwealth Financial in the second quarter worth $411,000. Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 24.9% during the second quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 118,422 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,922,000 after purchasing an additional 23,622 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in First Commonwealth Financial by 67.6% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,597,925 shares of the bank’s stock worth $58,394,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451,544 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in First Commonwealth Financial by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 218,420 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,567,000 after buying an additional 2,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 123,795 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,009,000 after buying an additional 2,830 shares during the last quarter. 72.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
First Commonwealth Financial Company Profile
First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania, is a bank holding company whose primary subsidiary is First Commonwealth Bank. Established in 1889 as Indiana National Bank, the company has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to build a diversified platform of commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management services.
First Commonwealth offers a comprehensive suite of financial products, including deposit accounts, personal and business lending solutions, mortgage origination and servicing, treasury management, and trust and investment services.