UBS Group AG Buys 106,654 Shares of First Commonwealth Financial Corporation $FCF

UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial Corporation (NYSE:FCF) by 103.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 210,197 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 106,654 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG’s holdings in First Commonwealth Financial were worth $3,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 21.3% during the 4th quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 41,283 shares of the bank’s stock worth $696,000 after acquiring an additional 7,240 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 34.2% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 62,860 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,060,000 after acquiring an additional 16,003 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $280,000. Wealthcare Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Commonwealth Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $239,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 146.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 97,976 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,652,000 after purchasing an additional 58,229 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Commonwealth Financial news, CFO James R. Reske sold 2,072 shares of First Commonwealth Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.52, for a total transaction of $38,373.44. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 81,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,506,564.96. The trade was a 2.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Norman J. Montgomery sold 12,964 shares of First Commonwealth Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.37, for a total value of $238,148.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 50,104 shares in the company, valued at $920,410.48. The trade was a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 44,180 shares of company stock worth $808,454 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

First Commonwealth Financial Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE FCF opened at $18.60 on Friday. 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 stock’s 50 day moving average is $18.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.49. The company has a market capitalization of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 0.75. First Commonwealth Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $15.00 and a 1-year high of $19.14.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $133.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $134.32 million. First Commonwealth Financial had a net margin of 21.19% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from First Commonwealth Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. First Commonwealth Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on First Commonwealth Financial from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Commonwealth Financial in a research report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.33.

About First Commonwealth Financial

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.