Short Interest in First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) Rises By 27.7%

First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,980,000 shares, an increase of 27.7% from the March 15th total of 1,550,000 shares. Currently, 2.0% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 795,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.5 days.

First Commonwealth Financial Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE FCF traded down $0.18 during trading on Monday, hitting $14.37. The stock had a trading volume of 166,915 shares, compared to its average volume of 606,884. The company has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 10.34 and a beta of 0.72. First Commonwealth Financial has a twelve month low of $12.71 and a twelve month 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 moving average price of $15.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.72.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.01). First Commonwealth Financial had a return on equity of 10.36% and a net margin of 20.38%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Commonwealth Financial will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current year.

First Commonwealth Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. First Commonwealth Financial’s payout ratio is 37.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FCF has been the subject of several analyst reports. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 price target on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $21.50 price target on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.58.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Commonwealth Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in First Commonwealth Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in First Commonwealth Financial in the third quarter valued at $46,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in First Commonwealth Financial by 815.8% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,187 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 2,839 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 173.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,396 shares of the bank’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 2,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring 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.