James Reske Sells 2,072 Shares of First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) Stock

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation (NYSE:FCF) CFO James Reske sold 2,072 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.74, for a total value of $34,685.28. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 80,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,344,406.14. This represents a 2.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

First Commonwealth Financial Stock Up 0.1%

FCF opened at $17.13 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $16.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.72. First Commonwealth Financial Corporation has a twelve month low of $13.54 and a twelve month high of $18.28.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The bank reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.02). First Commonwealth Financial had a net margin of 20.00% and a return on equity of 10.12%. The company had revenue of $135.98 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $136.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.31 EPS. Research analysts forecast that First Commonwealth Financial Corporation will post 1.45 EPS for the current year.

First Commonwealth Financial declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, December 1st that permits the company to buyback $25.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to buy up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

First Commonwealth Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th were issued a $0.135 dividend. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 7th. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.13%.

Institutional Trading of First Commonwealth Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FCF. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in First Commonwealth Financial by 393.5% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 161,216 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,505,000 after buying an additional 128,547 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in First Commonwealth Financial during the second quarter worth $411,000. Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 24.9% during the second quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 118,422 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,922,000 after acquiring an additional 23,622 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 67.6% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,597,925 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $58,394,000 after acquiring an additional 1,451,544 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 106.2% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 204,795 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,183,000 after purchasing an additional 105,478 shares in the last quarter. 72.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Raymond James Financial set a $20.00 price target on First Commonwealth Financial and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on First Commonwealth Financial in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $21.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson lowered shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of First Commonwealth Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.92.

First Commonwealth Financial Company Profile

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania, is a bank holding company whose primary subsidiary is First Commonwealth Bank. Established in 1889 as Indiana National Bank, the company has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to build a diversified platform of commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management services.

First Commonwealth offers a comprehensive suite of financial products, including deposit accounts, personal and business lending solutions, mortgage origination and servicing, treasury management, and trust and investment services.