First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• First Horizon's rating has been upgraded from "sell" to "hold" by Wall Street Zen.
• Wells Fargo & Company has increased their target price for First Horizon shares from $20.00 to $23.00.
• Insider trading activity has seen significant sales, with COO Tammy Locascio and EVP David T. Popwell selling shares recently, indicating a 17.78% decrease in their stock ownership.

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Horizon (NYSE:FHN - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on FHN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on First Horizon from $19.50 to $22.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on First Horizon from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Bank of America boosted their target price on First Horizon from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $24.00 target price (up from $22.00) on shares of First Horizon in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on First Horizon from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.34.

First Horizon Stock Performance

FHN traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $23.09. 18,621,059 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,428,257. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.90, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.67. First Horizon has a 1-year low of $14.82 and a 1-year high of $23.26. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $22.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $830.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $832.95 million. First Horizon had a return on equity of 10.55% and a net margin of 17.10%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.36 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Horizon will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. First Horizon's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Horizon

In related news, EVP David T. Popwell sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.50, for a total value of $2,250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 462,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,408,072.50. This represents a 17.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Tammy Locascio sold 10,285 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.25, for a total value of $228,841.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 342,051 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,610,634.75. The trade was a 2.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 148,295 shares of company stock valued at $3,322,663 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Horizon

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in First Horizon by 11.9% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 55,851 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,184,000 after purchasing an additional 5,945 shares during the last quarter. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH acquired a new position in First Horizon in the second quarter valued at $2,370,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC increased its stake in First Horizon by 873.1% during the second quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,625 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,458 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in First Horizon during the second quarter worth about $384,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors increased its stake in First Horizon by 15.1% during the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 99,549 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 13,062 shares during the last quarter. 80.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First Horizon

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.