Short Interest in F.N.B. Co. (NYSE:FNB) Grows By 8.7%

F.N.B. Co. (NYSE:FNB) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,530,000 shares, an increase of 8.7% from the March 15th total of 9,690,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,110,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days.

F.N.B. Stock Performance

Shares of FNB traded down $0.21 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $12.79. The stock had a trading volume of 1,871,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,824,382. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a market cap of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.69, a PEG ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 1.02. F.N.B. has a fifty-two week low of $10.09 and a fifty-two week high of $14.19. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.73.

F.N.B. (NYSE:FNB) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.03. F.N.B. had a net margin of 21.77% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The company had revenue of $337.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $403.84 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that F.N.B. will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current year.

F.N.B. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.75%. F.N.B.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.36%.

Insider Transactions at F.N.B.

In other news, Director William B. Campbell purchased 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.41 per share, for a total transaction of $33,525.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 145,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,949,653.08. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in F.N.B. by 20.3% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,449,816 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,434,000 after purchasing an additional 413,698 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of F.N.B. by 479.8% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 112,574 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,215,000 after acquiring an additional 93,159 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in shares of F.N.B. by 663.2% during the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 233,439 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,523,000 after acquiring an additional 202,853 shares during the period. Cardinal Capital Management lifted its position in F.N.B. by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 100,537 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 1,627 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of F.N.B. by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,230,885 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,281,000 after purchasing an additional 45,834 shares during the period. 79.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of F.N.B. from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Bank of America started coverage on F.N.B. in a report on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of F.N.B. from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of F.N.B. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.00.

F.N.B. Company Profile

F.N.B. Corporation, a bank and financial holding company, provides a range of financial products and services primarily to consumers, corporations, governments, and small- to medium-sized businesses in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Community Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance.