Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stake in First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in First Commonwealth Financial Co. (NYSE:FCF) by 63.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 28,394 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 11,040 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in First Commonwealth Financial were worth $438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Emerald Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial in the 4th quarter worth $74,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of First Commonwealth Financial in the third quarter worth $90,000. EMC Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 7.0% during the third quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 12,300 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $150,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teza Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial during the third quarter valued at $212,000. Institutional investors own 72.58% of the company’s stock.

First Commonwealth Financial Trading Up 0.6 %

First Commonwealth Financial stock opened at $13.67 on Friday. First Commonwealth Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $11.16 and a 52-week high of $15.90. The company has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.49 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.64.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $116.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $119.80 million. First Commonwealth Financial had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 12.89%. The firm’s revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts predict that First Commonwealth Financial Co. will post 1.4 EPS for the current year.

First Commonwealth Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This is a boost from First Commonwealth Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FCF has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered First Commonwealth Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Stephens dropped their target price on shares of First Commonwealth Financial from $16.50 to $15.50 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th.

About First Commonwealth Financial

First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides various consumer and commercial banking services in the United States. Its consumer services include personal checking accounts, interest-earning checking accounts, savings and health savings accounts, insured money market accounts, debit cards, investment certificates, fixed and variable rate certificates of deposit, mortgage loans, secured and unsecured installment loans, construction and real estate loans, safe deposit facilities, credit cards, credit lines with overdraft checking protection, IRA accounts, and automated teller machine (atm) services, as well as internet, mobile, and telephone banking services.