Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) Reaches New 12-Month High - What's Next?

Key Points

• 52-week high: NASDAQ:FISI hit a new 52-week high of $35.70 (last at $35.43) and has seen several positive analyst moves — Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its target to $38 (outperform), Weiss Ratings and Wall Street Zen upgraded to Buy, leaving an average MarketBeat target of $37 and an overall "Moderate Buy" consensus.
• Earnings and fundamentals: The company beat quarterly EPS estimates ($1.04 vs. $0.92) with revenue roughly in line, trades at a PE of 9.18 with a $694M market cap, a 20.85% net margin and a 13.08% ROE, and analysts project about 3.96 EPS for the year.
• Dividend and ownership: Financial Institutions raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 (annualized $1.28, ~3.6% yield, 33.3% payout ratio), and roughly 60.5% of shares are held by institutional investors who have recently adjusted stakes.

Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $35.70 and last traded at $35.4340, with a volume of 9198 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $35.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FISI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Financial Institutions from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Financial Institutions from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Financial Institutions from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $36.00 price target (up from $34.00) on shares of Financial Institutions in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $37.00.

Financial Institutions Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $694.03 million, a PE ratio of 9.18 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $32.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.76.

Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $62.67 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.76 million. Financial Institutions had a net margin of 20.85% and a return on equity of 13.08%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Financial Institutions, Inc. will post 3.96 EPS for the current year.

Financial Institutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Financial Institutions's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Financial Institutions's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Financial Institutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FISI. PL Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Financial Institutions by 30.4% during the 3rd quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,774,886 shares of the bank's stock worth $48,277,000 after acquiring an additional 413,376 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of Financial Institutions by 412.7% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 53,366 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 42,957 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Financial Institutions by 10.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 377,740 shares of the bank's stock worth $10,275,000 after purchasing an additional 34,906 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its position in Financial Institutions by 94.6% in the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 459,798 shares of the bank's stock worth $12,507,000 after purchasing an additional 223,478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new stake in Financial Institutions during the third quarter valued at $444,000. 60.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Financial Institutions

Financial Institutions, Inc NASDAQ: FISI is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide tax-advantaged income to shareholders. The company invests primarily in investment-grade municipal obligations issued by states, municipalities and government agencies across the United States. By focusing on high-credit-quality bonds, Financial Institutions aims to deliver current income that is exempt from federal income tax.

In constructing its portfolio, the company may also utilize money market instruments and repurchase agreements to manage liquidity and facilitate efficient settlement.

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