First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Shares of First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $22.19 and last traded at $22.09, with a volume of 66278 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $22.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on FHN shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on First Horizon from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on First Horizon from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of First Horizon from $22.50 to $23.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on First Horizon from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of First Horizon from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Horizon presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.04.

First Horizon Trading Up 1.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $20.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.18. The company has a market capitalization of $11.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.36, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.92.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.05. First Horizon had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 15.38%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that First Horizon Co. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. First Horizon’s payout ratio is presently 44.12%.

First Horizon announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 29th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at First Horizon

In other First Horizon news, CEO D Bryan Jordan sold 109,980 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.13, for a total value of $2,323,877.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,861,381 shares in the company, valued at $39,330,980.53. This trade represents a 5.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Harry V. Barton, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.92, for a total transaction of $199,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 166,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,323,452.80. This trade represents a 5.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FHN. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 43.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 948,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $14,724,000 after buying an additional 285,108 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 13.1% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 868,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,482,000 after purchasing an additional 100,359 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of First Horizon by 128.4% in the third quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 52,612 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $817,000 after buying an additional 29,581 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Horizon during the 4th quarter valued at $453,000. Finally, Greenwood Capital Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 465,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,229,000 after purchasing an additional 42,793 shares in the last quarter. 80.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Horizon Company Profile

First Horizon Corporation operates as the bank holding company for First Horizon Bank that provides various financial services. The company operates through Regional Banking and Specialty Banking segments. It offers general banking services for consumers, businesses, financial institutions, and governments.