Hovde Group Downgrades First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) to Market Perform

Hovde Group downgraded shares of First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $28.50 target price on the stock.

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded First National from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

First National Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FXNC opened at $26.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $235.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.67 and a beta of 0.54. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $24.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.08. First National has a fifty-two week low of $14.50 and a fifty-two week high of $26.97.

First National (NASDAQ:FXNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.19. First National had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 7.51%. As a group, analysts predict that First National will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of First National

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FXNC. PL Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in First National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $78,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in First National during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $88,000. Salzhauer Michael acquired a new stake in First National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $202,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in First National by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after purchasing an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in First National by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. 33.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First National Company Profile

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.