F.N.B. Corporation (NYSE:FNB) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Key Points

• F.N.B. Corporation experienced a significant 42.1% decrease in short interest during July, bringing the total to 7,870,000 shares short sold.
• Analyst ratings are positive, with multiple upgrades, leading to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.64.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.1%.

F.N.B. Corporation (NYSE:FNB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 7,870,000 shares, adeclineof42.1% from the July 15th total of 13,600,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,990,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days. Approximately2.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Approximately2.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,990,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

F.N.B. Price Performance

FNB traded up $0.6610 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.5010. 15,604,309 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,191,251. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. F.N.B. has a 1 year low of $10.88 and a 1 year high of $17.70. The business's 50 day moving average price is $15.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.29. The company has a market capitalization of $5.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.94.

F.N.B. (NYSE:FNB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.03. F.N.B. had a return on equity of 7.94% and a net margin of 17.88%.The business had revenue of $438.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $424.39 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.34 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that F.N.B. will post 1.45 earnings per share for the current year.

F.N.B. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. F.N.B.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on FNB shares. DA Davidson lifted their price target on F.N.B. from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $18.50 price target (up from $16.50) on shares of F.N.B. in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded F.N.B. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 13th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on F.N.B. from $17.50 to $18.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on F.N.B. from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, F.N.B. has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $18.64.

Institutional Trading of F.N.B.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of F.N.B. by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 39,531,150 shares of the bank's stock valued at $531,694,000 after acquiring an additional 114,672 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of F.N.B. by 76.8% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,233,363 shares of the bank's stock valued at $77,349,000 after acquiring an additional 2,273,736 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of F.N.B. by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,133,235 shares of the bank's stock valued at $46,309,000 after acquiring an additional 655,383 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of F.N.B. by 36.4% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,896,488 shares of the bank's stock valued at $25,204,000 after acquiring an additional 505,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of F.N.B. by 77.4% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,513,248 shares of the bank's stock valued at $20,353,000 after acquiring an additional 660,387 shares in the last quarter. 79.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About F.N.B.

F.N.B. Corporation, a bank and financial holding company, provides a range of financial products and services primarily to consumers, corporations, governments, and small- to medium-sized businesses in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Community Banking, Wealth Management, and Insurance.