First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $22.04.

Several research firms recently weighed in on FHN. Bank of America increased their price target on First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of First Horizon from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of First Horizon from $22.50 to $23.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th.

First Horizon Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE FHN opened at $21.58 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. First Horizon has a 12-month low of $13.72 and a 12-month high of $22.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $21.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.92.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Horizon will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, October 29th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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 paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.12%.

Insider Transactions at First Horizon

In other First Horizon news, CEO D Bryan Jordan sold 109,980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.13, for a total transaction 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 represents a 5.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Horizon by 102.3% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 21,285,306 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $428,686,000 after purchasing an additional 10,763,349 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of First Horizon by 26.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 37,131,162 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $747,822,000 after buying an additional 7,715,191 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 496.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,202,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $165,199,000 after buying an additional 6,827,040 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of First Horizon in the 4th quarter worth approximately $132,418,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Horizon in the 4th quarter worth approximately $102,467,000. 80.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Horizon

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.