First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCBC) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $49.39 and last traded at $49.4290, with a volume of 200 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.96.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on FCBC shares. Raymond James Financial started coverage on First Community Bancshares in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Community Bancshares in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of First Community Bancshares to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Community Bancshares presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

First Community Bancshares Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $44.94 and a 200-day moving average of $42.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $915.76 million, a P/E ratio of 15.31 and a beta of 0.48.

First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.02. First Community Bancshares had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 28.84%.The firm had revenue of $92.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $51.20 million. Equities analysts anticipate that First Community Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Community Bancshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This is a boost from First Community Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. First Community Bancshares’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Gary R. Mills sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.67, for a total transaction of $166,845.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 5,798 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $276,390.66. The trade was a 37.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Community Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FCBC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Community Bancshares by 3.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,052,046 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,611,000 after purchasing an additional 33,184 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in First Community Bancshares by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 439,993 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,845,000 after buying an additional 17,165 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Community Bancshares by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 417,549 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,084,000 after acquiring an additional 2,944 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Community Bancshares by 122.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 97,773 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,298,000 after buying an additional 53,804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its stake in shares of First Community Bancshares by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 77,191 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,604,000 after purchasing an additional 18,612 shares during the last quarter. 34.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Community Bancshares Company Profile

First Community Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: FCBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Mebane, North Carolina, that delivers banking and financial services through its wholly owned subsidiary, First Community Bank. The company’s core focus is on relationship-driven community banking, offering clients a blend of personalized service and competitive digital banking capabilities. It serves a diverse clientele that includes individuals, families, small and mid-sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and professional practices.

The bank provides a broad spectrum of deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts, alongside treasury management and payment processing solutions.