Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Buys New Shares in First Commonwealth Financial Corporation $FCF

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired 86,500 shares of First Commonwealth Financial Corporation, valuing the investment at approximately $1,344,000, representing a 0.08% stake in the bank.
• Several large investors, including AQR Capital Management LLC and Royal Bank of Canada, increased their holdings in First Commonwealth Financial during the 1st quarter, indicating growing interest in the bank's stock.
• First Commonwealth Financial recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.135 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.1%, reinforcing its commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Commonwealth Financial Corporation (NYSE:FCF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 86,500 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,344,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of First Commonwealth Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FCF. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in shares of First Commonwealth Financial by 2,911.4% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,379 shares of the bank's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in First Commonwealth Financial by 73.6% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,932 shares of the bank's stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 3,362 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in First Commonwealth Financial during the 1st quarter worth $156,000. Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in First Commonwealth Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $163,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in First Commonwealth Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $184,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.58% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael P. Mccuen bought 2,826 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $17.67 per share, for a total transaction of $49,935.42. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 59,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,042,901.07. This represents a 5.03% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO James R. Reske sold 2,190 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.74, for a total transaction of $38,850.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 88,056 shares in the company, valued at $1,562,113.44. This trade represents a 2.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

First Commonwealth Financial Trading Up 0.8%

FCF traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $17.38. 741,687 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 444,084. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $17.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.08. First Commonwealth Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $13.54 and a 1-year high of $19.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.37 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

First Commonwealth Financial (NYSE:FCF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The bank reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.04. First Commonwealth Financial had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 18.94%.The company had revenue of $131.33 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $125.88 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Commonwealth Financial Corporation will post 1.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Commonwealth Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.135 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. First Commonwealth Financial's dividend payout ratio is 41.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded First Commonwealth Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Commonwealth Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $18.90.

First Commonwealth Financial Company Profile

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.