First Carolina Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:FCBM) Stock Short Interest Climbs 108.9%

First Carolina Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:FCBM) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totaling 176,522 shares, a growth of 108.9% from the September 15th total of 84,488 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 390,786 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.5 days.

First Carolina Financial Services Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of FCBM traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $12.58. 66,078 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 267,883. First Carolina Financial Services has a 52 week low of $12.17 and a 52 week high of $13.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $12.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

First Carolina Financial Services (NYSE:FCBM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $32.26 million during the quarter. Research analysts expect that First Carolina Financial Services will post 0.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research raised First Carolina Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Carolina Financial Services to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Weiss Ratings started coverage on First Carolina Financial Services in a research report on Monday, September 14th. They set a “sell (e)” rating on the stock. Hovde Group assumed coverage on First Carolina Financial Services in a report on Friday, July 17th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $14.00 price target for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on First Carolina Financial Services in a report on Monday, July 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.50.

First Carolina Financial Services Company Profile

First Carolina Financial Services, Inc is a bank holding company associated with First Carolina Bank, a community banking institution based in North Carolina. The company focuses on serving businesses, individuals and organizations through relationship-oriented banking services.

First Carolina Bank’s offerings include business and personal checking and savings accounts, commercial and consumer lending, mortgage-related financing, cash-management services, online and mobile banking, and other traditional banking products.