First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.04 EPS

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.04, FiscalAI reports. First National had a net margin of 17.94% and a return on equity of 11.48%.

First National Stock Up 4.0%

NASDAQ:FXNC traded up $1.22 on Wednesday, hitting $31.50. 14,610 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 68,497. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $29.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.83. First National has a 52 week low of $20.78 and a 52 week high of $31.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a market cap of $284.76 million, a P/E ratio of 13.52 and a beta of 0.43.

First National Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Trading of First National

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in First National by 157.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 40,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $915,000 after purchasing an additional 24,931 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of First National by 6.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 15,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 959 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in First National during the first quarter worth $598,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in First National by 109.7% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 180,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,512,000 after acquiring an additional 94,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired a new stake in First National in the 2nd quarter valued at about $72,000. Institutional investors own 33.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FXNC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded First National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First National in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on First National in a report on Thursday, June 25th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock 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.