First Community Co. (NASDAQ:FCCO) Short Interest Up 94.9% in February

First Community Co. (NASDAQ:FCCO) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 130,200 shares, an increase of 94.9% from the January 31st total of 66,800 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 51,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Community

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FCCO. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in First Community during the 4th quarter worth about $284,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings in shares of First Community by 77.3% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 37,400 shares of the bank’s stock worth $898,000 after purchasing an additional 16,300 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP grew its position in First Community by 79.7% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 39,517 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $948,000 after buying an additional 17,532 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in First Community by 31.7% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 90,731 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,178,000 after buying an additional 21,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Community by 63.6% in the 4th quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 6,369 shares of the bank’s stock worth $153,000 after acquiring an additional 2,475 shares during the period. 61.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Community Price Performance

FCCO stock traded up $0.55 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $25.48. 19,000 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 64,067. The company has a market cap of $194.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.08 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $25.05 and its 200 day moving average is $23.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. First Community has a 12-month low of $15.40 and a 12-month high of $27.96.

First Community (NASDAQ:FCCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.06. First Community had a return on equity of 10.14% and a net margin of 13.49%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that First Community will post 2.28 EPS for the current year.

First Community Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. First Community’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on FCCO. Raymond James raised First Community from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $27.00 to $30.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Janney Montgomery Scott raised First Community from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Hovde Group upped their price objective on First Community from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd.

First Community Company Profile

First Community Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First Community Bank that provides various commercial and retail banking products and services to small-to-medium sized businesses, professionals, and individuals. The company operates through Commercial and Retail Banking, Mortgage Banking, and Investment Advisory and Non-Deposit segments.