First Horizon Corporation (NYSE:FHN) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest fell 20.2% in March to 10,025,695 shares (about 2.1% of shares short), leaving a short-interest ratio of 1.8 days, indicating a notable reduction in bearish positioning.
• Q1 results: First Horizon reported net income of $257M and EPS of $0.53, beating consensus by $0.04 on stronger net interest and fee income, though total revenue slightly missed estimates and expenses rose.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed with an average rating of "Hold" and a $26.45 target, while institutional investors own roughly 80% of the stock and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.17.

First Horizon Corporation (NYSE:FHN - Get Free Report) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 10,025,695 shares, a drop of 20.2% from the March 15th total of 12,556,699 shares. Currently, 2.1% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,460,338 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FHN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $27.00 price target on shares of First Horizon and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. UBS Group cut shares of First Horizon from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of First Horizon from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of First Horizon from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of First Horizon from $28.00 to $28.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Horizon has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $26.45.

Key Headlines Impacting First Horizon

Here are the key news stories impacting First Horizon this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 profit beat and strong net income — First Horizon reported Q1 net income of $257M and EPS of $0.53, up year-over-year, beating consensus and driving improved profitability metrics. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: NII and fee income supported results — Higher net interest income and fee income helped FHN beat EPS expectations, underpinning near-term earnings resilience. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Credit quality and capital actions look constructive — Management highlighted resilient credit quality, stable non-interest-bearing deposits and active capital returns (including share repurchases), which reduce downside risk. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price-target moves remain cautious — Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its target to $26 (market perform); DA Davidson reaffirmed a neutral rating with a $26 target — signals limited near-term upside from analysts. Read More. • Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings detail and slides available — The earnings call transcript and presentation provide color on revenue drivers, expense dynamics and the capital plan for 2026; useful for investors reviewing guidance and CET1 targets. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed and expenses rising — Total revenue missed Street estimates and management flagged higher expenses; analysts note these trends and somewhat weaker capital ratios temper the EPS beat. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Cautionary commentary — Several write-ups call the quarter a decent start but stress that follow-through on revenue growth, expense control and capital targets (CET1 goal ~10.5%) will be key for sustained share gains. Read More.

Insider Activity at First Horizon

In other First Horizon news, EVP Anthony J. Restel sold 5,719 shares of First Horizon stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.35, for a total value of $139,257.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 619,132 shares in the company, valued at $15,075,864.20. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Horizon

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FHN. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in First Horizon by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,033,759 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $192,007,000 after purchasing an additional 426,951 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in First Horizon in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $153,942,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in First Horizon by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 5,336,021 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $127,531,000 after purchasing an additional 116,191 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in First Horizon by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,212,543 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $124,580,000 after purchasing an additional 491,464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP boosted its holdings in First Horizon by 25.3% in the 3rd quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP now owns 4,788,438 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $108,267,000 after purchasing an additional 967,219 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.28% of the company's stock.

First Horizon Stock Performance

Shares of FHN traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $23.98. 6,567,065 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,400,130. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company has a market capitalization of $11.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.62. The business's 50-day moving average price is $23.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.16. First Horizon has a twelve month low of $16.44 and a twelve month high of $26.56.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $865.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $869.49 million. First Horizon had a net margin of 20.54% and a return on equity of 11.65%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Horizon will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.17 dividend. This is a boost from First Horizon's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. First Horizon's payout ratio is presently 36.17%.

First Horizon Company Profile

First Horizon Corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, is a diversified financial services company providing an array of retail, commercial and wealth management solutions. As the largest bank-based financial services firm in Tennessee, First Horizon operates through a network of branches and digital platforms across the Southeastern United States, offering personal and business banking, mortgage origination and servicing, payment solutions and treasury management services.

Tracing its origins to the First National Bank of Memphis established in 1864, First Horizon has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to serve customers in Tennessee, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.

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