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Core Insights - First Community Corporation (NASDAQ:FCCO) reported strong quarterly earnings for the period ending December 2025, with earnings per share (EPS) of $0.69, surpassing the estimated $0.68, and revenue of $20.6 million, exceeding the forecasted $20.2 million [1][6] Financial Performance - The company's revenue of $20.6 million represents a 17.9% increase from the previous year, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $20.23 million, resulting in a positive surprise of 1.86% [2] - FCCO's EPS of $0.69 for the quarter shows a significant improvement from $0.55 a year ago, delivering a 1.47% surprise over the consensus estimate [3] - In the previous quarter, FCCO reported earnings of $0.72 per share against an anticipated $0.67, resulting in a 7.46% surprise, indicating a trend of surpassing consensus EPS estimates [4] Valuation Metrics - FCCO's financial metrics include a P/E ratio of 11.71 and a price-to-sales ratio of 2.04, suggesting a reasonable market valuation [5] - The company's debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72 indicates a moderate level of debt, while an earnings yield of 8.54% reflects solid earnings generation per dollar invested [5][6]

Core Viewpoint - First Community Corporation (FCCO) reported its final quarterly results for 2025, with GAAP earnings of $0.66 per share, which missed expectations by $0.02 and decreased by $0.05 compared to Q3 earnings [1] Financial Performance - GAAP earnings per share for FCCO were $0.66, falling short of market expectations by $0.02 [1] - The earnings also represented a decline of $0.05 from the previous quarter (Q3) [1]

Financial Performance - Net income for Q4 2025 was $4.830 million, a decrease from $5.192 million in Q3 2025, while net income for the year was $19.205 million, up 37.6% from $13.955 million in 2024[2][4] - Diluted EPS for Q4 2025 was $0.62, down from $0.67 in Q3 2025, and for the year, it was $2.47, an increase of 36.5% from $1.81 in 2024[3][4] - Net income for the three months ended December 31, 2025, was $4,830,000, a 14.1% increase from $4,232,000 in the same period of 2024[24] - The company reported net income excluding the after-tax effect of merger expenses (non-GAAP) of $5,357 million for December 2025, compared to $4,232 million in December 2024, a growth of 26.5%[27] Loan and Deposit Growth - Total loan growth for 2025 was $90.5 million, or 7.4%, with Q4 growth of $31.7 million, an annualized growth rate of 9.8%[2][8] - Total deposits increased by $73.6 million, or 4.4%, for the year, but decreased by $21.6 million, or 1.2%, in Q4 2025[2][9] - Average loans rose to $1,302,826 thousand in Q4 2025, up from $1,211,880 thousand in Q4 2024, marking an increase of 7.5%[23] Asset Management - Assets under management (AUM) in the investment advisory line reached a record $1.170 billion at year-end 2025, up from $1.103 billion at Q3 2025[2] - Total revenue in the investment advisory line for 2025 was $7.565 million, up from $6.181 million in 2024, with AUM ending at $1.170 billion[14] - The book value per common share increased to $21.78 as of December 31, 2025, from $21.01 at September 30, 2025[22] Income and Expenses - Net interest income for 2025 increased by 19.2% to $62.0 million compared to $52.0 million in 2024[11] - Total non-interest expense for Q4 2025 was $13.827 million, an increase of $153 thousand from Q3 2025[15] - Non-interest income totaled $4,288,000 for the three months ended December 31, 2025, compared to $3,608,000 in the same period of 2024, reflecting an increase of 18.8%[24] Capital Ratios and Equity - The bank's regulatory capital ratios exceeded well-capitalized minimum levels, with a Tier I Risk Based ratio of 13.11% as of December 31, 2025[5] - Shareholders' equity increased to $164,514 thousand as of December 31, 2025, from $143,726 thousand in the previous year, a growth of 14.4%[25] - The Tier 1 Capital Ratio was 13.11% as of December 31, 2025, compared to 13.10% at September 30, 2025[22] Efficiency and Profitability Metrics - The efficiency ratio improved to 64.51% for the three months ended December 31, 2025, down from 66.67% in the same period of 2024, indicating better cost management[24] - Return on average assets increased to 0.92% for the three months ended December 31, 2025, compared to 0.86% in the same period of 2024[24] - Return on average common equity was 11.65% for the three months ended December 31, 2025, slightly down from 11.71% in the same period of 2024[24] Acquisitions - The company completed the acquisition of Signature Bank of Georgia on January 8, 2026[2] - First Community Corporation completed the acquisition of Signature Bank of Georgia on January 8, 2026, which reported $197.8 million in loans and $235.3 million in deposits as of December 31, 2025[16] Non-Performing Assets - Total nonperforming assets decreased to $372 thousand in Q4 2025 from $881 thousand in Q4 2024, a reduction of 57.8%[23] - Net charge-offs for the twelve months ended December 31, 2025, were $52 thousand, down from $65 thousand in the previous year, indicating a decline of 20.0%[23]

分组1 - First Community (FCCO) reported quarterly earnings of $0.69 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.68 per share, and up from $0.55 per share a year ago, representing an earnings surprise of +1.47% [1] - The company posted revenues of $20.6 million for the quarter ended December 2025, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.86%, and an increase from year-ago revenues of $17.47 million [2] - First Community has consistently surpassed consensus EPS estimates over the last four quarters, achieving this milestone four times [2] 分组2 - The stock has underperformed the market, losing about 3.6% since the beginning of the year, while the S&P 500 has gained 1.9% [3] - The current consensus EPS estimate for the coming quarter is $0.63 on revenues of $23.79 million, and for the current fiscal year, it is $2.98 on revenues of $101.23 million [7] - The Zacks Industry Rank for Banks - Southeast is currently in the top 23% of over 250 Zacks industries, indicating a favorable outlook for the industry [8]

Core Viewpoint First Community Corporation reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2025, showing significant growth in net income and earnings per share, alongside a strong capital position and asset quality. Financial Performance - Net income for Q4 2025 was $4.830 million, down from $5.192 million in Q3 2025 but up from $4.232 million in Q4 2024, with diluted earnings per share (EPS) at $0.62 compared to $0.67 in Q3 2025 and $0.55 in Q4 2024 [2][3] - For the year ended December 31, 2025, net income increased by 37.6% to $19.205 million from $13.955 million in 2024, with diluted EPS rising 36.5% to $2.47 from $1.81 in 2024 [3] Cash Dividend and Capital Management - The Board approved a cash dividend of $0.16 per common share for Q4 2025, marking the 96th consecutive quarter of dividends [4] - A share repurchase plan of up to $7.5 million was approved, representing approximately 4.5% of total shareholders' equity as of December 31, 2025 [4] Asset Quality - Non-performing assets (NPAs) were 0.02% of total assets at year-end 2025, down from 0.04% at the end of Q3 2025, indicating strong asset quality [6] - The past due ratio for all loans remained stable at 0.07% at year-end 2025 [6] Balance Sheet Highlights - Total loans increased by $31.7 million during Q4 2025, reaching $1.311 billion, with an annualized growth rate of 9.8% [8] - Total deposits were $1.750 billion at December 31, 2025, reflecting a 4.4% increase from $1.676 billion at the end of 2024 [9] Revenue Generation - Net interest income for the year ended December 31, 2025, rose 19.2% to $62.0 million from $52.0 million in 2024, with a net interest margin of 3.32% for Q4 2025 [11] - Total non-interest income for Q4 2025 was $4.288 million, compared to $4.469 million in Q3 2025 and $3.608 million in Q4 2024 [14] Acquisition Update - The acquisition of Signature Bank of Georgia was completed on January 8, 2026, providing entry into a new market and a new line of business focused on SBA and government-guaranteed lending [17]

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Core Viewpoint - First Community Corporation has successfully completed the acquisition of Signature Bank of Georgia, enhancing its asset base and expanding its banking network [1][2][3] Group 1: Acquisition Details - The acquisition of Signature Bank was finalized on January 8, 2026, with Signature Bank merging into First Community Bank [1] - The deal is valued at approximately $50 million as of December 31, 2025, with Signature Bank shareholders receiving 0.6410 shares of First Community's common stock for each share of Signature Bank [3] - Following the merger, the combined entity has over $2.3 billion in assets, $2.1 billion in deposits, and $1.5 billion in loans [2] Group 2: Operational Impact - The former offices of Signature Bank will operate under the name First Community Bank d/b/a Signature Bank of Georgia until the systems conversion is completed in March 2026 [2] - The merger creates a banking office network of 23 full-service offices and a loan production office across various regions in South Carolina and Georgia [2] Group 3: Leadership Changes - Two new directors have been appointed to the boards of First Community and First Community Bank: Fred J. Deutsch as a non-independent director and Jonathan W. Been as an independent director [4]

Core Viewpoint - First Community (FCCO) has been upgraded to a Zacks Rank 2 (Buy), indicating a positive trend in earnings estimates which is a significant factor influencing stock prices [1][3]. Earnings Estimates and Stock Price Movement - The Zacks rating system is based on changes in earnings estimates, which are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements, particularly due to institutional investors' reliance on these estimates for valuation [4][6]. - An increase in earnings estimates typically leads to higher fair value for a stock, prompting institutional investors to buy or sell, which in turn affects stock prices [4]. Company Performance and Outlook - The upgrade for First Community reflects an improvement in its underlying business, suggesting that investors may respond positively by driving the stock price higher [5]. - For the fiscal year ending December 2025, First Community is expected to earn $2.60 per share, with a 1.6% increase in the Zacks Consensus Estimate over the past three months [8]. Zacks Rank System - The Zacks Rank system classifies stocks into five groups based on earnings estimates, with a strong historical performance, particularly for Zacks Rank 1 stocks which have averaged a +25% annual return since 1988 [7]. - The upgrade to Zacks Rank 2 places First Community in the top 20% of Zacks-covered stocks, indicating a strong potential for market-beating returns in the near term [10].

Group 1 - First Community Corporation announced its earnings release schedule for 2026, with the fourth quarter of 2025 earnings set to be released on January 28, 2026 [1] - The earnings releases for 2026 will occur on April 22, July 22, and October 21, with all releases scheduled for approximately 9:00 am Eastern Time [1] Group 2 - First Community Corporation is the holding company for First Community Bank, which operates as a full-service commercial bank in South Carolina and Georgia [2] - The bank offers a range of services including deposit and loan products, residential mortgage lending, and financial planning/investment advisory services [2] - First Community Bank serves customers in various regions including the Midlands, Aiken, Upstate, and Piedmont Regions of South Carolina, as well as Augusta, Georgia [2]