JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) Price Target to $22.50

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) had its target price trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $23.00 to $22.50 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on FHN. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on First Horizon from $18.50 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays raised their price objective on First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on First Horizon from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of First Horizon from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Wedbush cut shares of First Horizon from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Horizon has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.35.

First Horizon Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:FHN opened at $20.65 on Tuesday. 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 $12.95 and a 12-month high of $21.72. The business has a 50 day moving average of $20.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $17.44. The company has a market capitalization of $10.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.96, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.92.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $821.63 million. First Horizon had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 9.51%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.27 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that First Horizon will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. First Horizon’s payout ratio is 43.48%.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 directly owns 166,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,323,452.80. This trade represents a 5.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP David T. Popwell sold 100,974 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.77, for a total transaction of $1,996,255.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 519,926 shares in the company, valued at $10,278,937.02. The trade was a 16.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Horizon

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 160.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 884 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in First Horizon by 365.0% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,325 shares during the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC boosted its stake in First Horizon by 306.2% during the second quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 1,828 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,378 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in First Horizon by 44.0% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Horizon during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.28% of the company’s stock.

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.