First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO) EVP Sells 10,000 Shares of Stock

First Community Corporation (NASDAQ:FCCO) EVP Fred Joseph Deutsch sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.52, for a total value of $345,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $637,515.36. This trade represents a 35.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

First Community Stock Performance

Shares of FCCO traded up $1.14 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $35.07. 64,009 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 79,057. First Community Corporation has a twelve month low of $24.12 and a twelve month high of $35.26. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $329.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 0.34.

First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $25.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.69 million. First Community had a return on equity of 14.03% and a net margin of 18.32%. Analysts predict that First Community Corporation will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current year.

First Community Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. This is an increase from First Community’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. First Community’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.88%.

Institutional Trading of First Community

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FCCO. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Community by 115.5% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 195,527 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,411,000 after buying an additional 104,796 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in First Community by 1,230.5% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 12,640 shares of the bank’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 11,690 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in First Community by 199.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 90,919 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,051,000 after acquiring an additional 60,596 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in First Community by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,080 shares of the bank’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 721 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in First Community by 63.7% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 51,323 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,158,000 after acquiring an additional 19,978 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Community in a report on Friday, July 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.00.

About First Community

First Community Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: FCCO) is the bank holding company for First Community Bank, a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Bluefield, West Virginia. Through its subsidiary, the company delivers a comprehensive range of financial services to individuals, small businesses and larger commercial clients. Its operations are focused on community banking, with an emphasis on personalized relationship management and local decision-making.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit and money market accounts, as well as consumer and commercial lending solutions.