Federated Hermes (NYSE:FHI) Hits New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

Federated Hermes, Inc. (NYSE:FHI - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $47.12 and last traded at $46.80, with a volume of 33620 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $46.49.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FHI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Federated Hermes from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. TD Cowen cut shares of Federated Hermes from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Federated Hermes from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Federated Hermes from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Federated Hermes from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.50.

Federated Hermes Stock Up 1.4%

The firm has a market cap of $3.73 billion, a PE ratio of 13.28, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 3.04. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $43.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $40.56.

Federated Hermes (NYSE:FHI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.19. Federated Hermes had a net margin of 17.74% and a return on equity of 32.17%. The company had revenue of $423.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $425.43 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. Federated Hermes's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Federated Hermes, Inc. will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Federated Hermes Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a positive change from Federated Hermes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 8th. Federated Hermes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.31%.

Insider Activity at Federated Hermes

In other news, VP Paul A. Uhlman sold 6,057 shares of Federated Hermes stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.14, for a total value of $255,241.98. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 316,930 shares in the company, valued at $13,355,430.20. The trade was a 1.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 3.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Federated Hermes

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 246.6% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 863 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Federated Hermes in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of Federated Hermes in the second quarter worth $44,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in Federated Hermes by 22.7% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,551 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in Federated Hermes during the first quarter valued at $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.94% of the company's stock.

About Federated Hermes

Federated Hermes, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, including high net worth individuals, banking or thrift institutions, investment companies, pension and profit sharing plans, pooled investment vehicles, charitable organizations, state or municipal government entities, and registered investment advisors.