First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) Hits New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

First Community Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FCBC) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock to a hold rating. The company traded as high as $45.84 and last traded at $44.9540, with a volume of 4486 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $45.64.

A number of other analysts have also commented on FCBC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Community Bancshares in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on First Community Bancshares in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Community Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Community Bancshares

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in First Community Bancshares by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 35,959 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,205,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its position in shares of First Community Bancshares by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 19,291 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $651,000 after acquiring an additional 437 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of First Community Bancshares by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 10,124 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Community Bancshares by 10.5% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,265 shares of the bank’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Community Bancshares by 78.0% during the 3rd quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 1,143 shares of the bank’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 34.95% of the company’s stock.

First Community Bancshares Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $851.41 million, a P/E ratio of 17.03 and a beta of 0.48. The business’s fifty day moving average is $43.20 and its 200 day moving average is $40.02.

First Community Bancshares (NASDAQ:FCBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.01. First Community Bancshares had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 25.89%.The business had revenue of $78.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.20 million. As a group, research analysts expect that First Community Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Community Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. First Community Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.79%.

About First Community Bancshares

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.