First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) EVP Sells $238,148.68 in Stock

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation (NYSE:FCF) EVP Norman Montgomery sold 12,964 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.37, for a total value of $238,148.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 50,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $920,410.48. This represents a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

First Commonwealth Financial Trading Up 0.0%

FCF traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $18.47. 762,319 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 862,730. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $17.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.26. First Commonwealth Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $15.00 and a 1-year high of $19.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a PE ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 0.75.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.03). First Commonwealth Financial had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 21.19%.The firm had revenue of $133.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $134.32 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. First Commonwealth Financial’s revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that First Commonwealth Financial Corporation will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Commonwealth Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from First Commonwealth Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FCF has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James Financial set a $20.00 target price on First Commonwealth Financial and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on First Commonwealth Financial from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Commonwealth Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 20,253 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $341,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 3,621 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 17,801 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 94,031 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,585,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 300,680 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,880,000 after purchasing an additional 1,068 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.58% of the company’s stock.

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.