First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) Price Target Raised to $24.00

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) had its target price lifted by Royal Bank Of Canada from $23.00 to $24.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on FCF. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 price target (up from $21.00) on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research note on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.25.

First Commonwealth Financial Price Performance

FCF opened at $21.49 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.19 and a beta of 0.74. First Commonwealth Financial has a 1 year low of $15.00 and a 1 year high of $22.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.72.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.02. First Commonwealth Financial had a return on equity of 10.79% and a net margin of 22.62%.The firm had revenue of $139.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $137.48 million. Analysts forecast that First Commonwealth Financial will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Commonwealth Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO James R. Reske sold 2,072 shares of First Commonwealth Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.50, for a total value of $42,476.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 77,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,582,682. The trade was a 2.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Michael P. Mccuen sold 5,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.58, for a total value of $97,545.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 56,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,056,477.38. This represents a 8.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 11,466 shares of company stock valued at $217,617 over the last 90 days. 1.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of FCF. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in First Commonwealth Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $15,685,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in First Commonwealth Financial by 112.9% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,091,740 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,614,000 after purchasing an additional 578,893 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 95.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 559,989 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,845,000 after purchasing an additional 273,351 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,854,021 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $81,839,000 after purchasing an additional 216,099 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 453.3% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 215,591 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,790,000 after purchasing an additional 176,626 shares in the last quarter. 72.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More First Commonwealth Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting First Commonwealth Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $24 from $21 while maintaining a “market perform” rating, implying additional upside from recent trading levels. Benzinga analyst price-target report
• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada also lifted its target to $24 from $23 and retained an “outperform” rating, reinforcing expectations for further appreciation. Benzinga analyst price-target report
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded FCF to Rank #2, or “Buy,” citing improving earnings prospects. The upgrade could attract additional near-term investor interest. Zacks Buy upgrade article
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects net interest margin in the low-4% range, reiterated its $74 million–$76 million quarterly expense outlook, and expanded its share-repurchase authorization. Stable operating guidance and buybacks are supportive for earnings per share. First Commonwealth margin, expense and buyback update
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings of $0.44 per share versus a $0.42 consensus estimate and revenue of $139.42 million versus $137.48 million. The strong report helped FCF reach a new 52-week high. First Commonwealth earnings and 52-week high article
• Neutral Sentiment: First Commonwealth approved updates to its corporate-governance and proxy rules. The changes modernize shareholder and board procedures but are not expected to materially affect near-term financial results. Corporate governance update

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.