First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) had its target price raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $22.50 to $23.50 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on FHN. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of First Horizon from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Wedbush cut First Horizon from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $20.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. UBS Group initiated coverage on First Horizon in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on First Horizon from $18.50 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on First Horizon from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.04.

First Horizon Price Performance

FHN stock opened at $21.54 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.42 billion, a PE ratio of 15.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $20.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.71. First Horizon has a 52-week low of $13.45 and a 52-week high of $21.72.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.05. First Horizon had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 9.51%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. Analysts predict that First Horizon will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.48%.

First Horizon announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, October 29th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Horizon

In other news, EVP David T. Popwell sold 100,974 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.77, for a total transaction of $1,996,255.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 519,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,278,937.02. This trade represents a 16.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Harry V. Barton, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was 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 directly owns 166,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,323,452.80. The trade was a 5.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Horizon

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Horizon by 2.3% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 239,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,772,000 after acquiring an additional 5,469 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new position in First Horizon during the 2nd quarter valued at $159,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of First Horizon by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 121,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,909,000 after purchasing an additional 6,696 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its stake in shares of First Horizon by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 25,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $406,000 after buying an additional 2,143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 11.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 73,396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after buying an additional 7,436 shares during the period. 80.28% of the stock is currently owned by 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.