First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

First Horizon Corporation (NYSE:FHN)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $24.88 and last traded at $24.8550, with a volume of 2259873 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of First Horizon in a report on Thursday, December 11th. DA Davidson upgraded shares of First Horizon from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of First Horizon in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and issued a $20.00 price target (down previously from $26.00) on shares of First Horizon in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on First Horizon from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.41.

First Horizon Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $22.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.19. The firm has a market cap of $12.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.61.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $893.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $848.08 million. First Horizon had a return on equity of 10.93% and a net margin of 18.08%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.42 EPS. Research analysts forecast that First Horizon Corporation will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. First Horizon’s payout ratio is presently 36.36%.

First Horizon declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, October 27th that allows the company to repurchase $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 11.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Horizon news, CAO Jeff L. Fleming sold 7,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.74, for a total value of $165,637.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 128,626 shares in the company, valued at $2,796,329.24. This represents a 5.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David T. Popwell sold 155,149 shares of First Horizon stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.31, for a total value of $3,306,225.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 307,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,551,375.92. This represents a 33.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Horizon

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Horizon during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in First Horizon in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Horizon in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 873.1% during the 2nd quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,625 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,458 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First Horizon by 156.7% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,794 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.28% of the company’s stock.

About First Horizon

First Horizon Corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, is a diversified financial services company providing an array of retail, commercial and wealth management solutions. As the largest bank-based financial services firm in Tennessee, First Horizon operates through a network of branches and digital platforms across the Southeastern United States, offering personal and business banking, mortgage origination and servicing, payment solutions and treasury management services.

Tracing its origins to the First National Bank of Memphis established in 1864, First Horizon has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to serve customers in Tennessee, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.