First Hawaiian (NASDAQ:FHB) Upgraded to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded First Hawaiian from “hold” to “strong-buy,” making it the most bullish analyst call highlighted in the piece.
• Wall Street remains mixed on the stock overall: MarketBeat shows an average rating of “Hold” with an average target price of $29.25, while several firms recently raised price targets despite keeping cautious ratings.
• First Hawaiian recently reported Q1 EPS of $0.55, topping estimates by $0.02, and the stock was trading at $29.72 with a market cap of about $3.62 billion.

First Hawaiian (NASDAQ:FHB - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on FHB. TD Cowen upped their target price on First Hawaiian from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on First Hawaiian from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Barclays boosted their price target on First Hawaiian from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on First Hawaiian from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of First Hawaiian from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $29.25.

First Hawaiian Stock Performance

NASDAQ FHB opened at $29.72 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $28.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.72. The stock has a market cap of $3.62 billion, a PE ratio of 13.04, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.72. First Hawaiian has a fifty-two week low of $22.65 and a fifty-two week high of $30.58.

First Hawaiian (NASDAQ:FHB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.02. First Hawaiian had a return on equity of 10.39% and a net margin of 24.44%.The company had revenue of $220.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $223.59 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Hawaiian will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Hawaiian

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FHB. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in shares of First Hawaiian by 0.6% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 65,002 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,602,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in First Hawaiian by 1.6% in the first quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 26,105 shares of the bank's stock valued at $643,000 after acquiring an additional 406 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in First Hawaiian by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,626 shares of the bank's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in First Hawaiian by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,171 shares of the bank's stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in First Hawaiian by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,702 shares of the bank's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.63% of the company's stock.

About First Hawaiian

First Hawaiian, Inc is the oldest and largest bank in Hawaii, operating as the bank holding company for First Hawaiian Bank. Established in 1858, the company offers a full suite of financial services to individual, business and institutional clients. Its product portfolio includes consumer and commercial lending, deposit accounts, treasury and cash management, foreign exchange and trade finance, as well as wealth management and trust services.

First Hawaiian serves customers through an extensive network of branches, ATMs and digital channels across the Hawaiian Islands, Guam, Saipan and American Samoa.

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