First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) Short Interest Update

First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,110,000 shares, a growth of 9.2% from the October 15th total of 6,510,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 6,150,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days.

First Horizon Trading Down 0.3 %

First Horizon stock opened at $20.30 on Tuesday. First Horizon has a one year low of $11.87 and a one year high of $20.53. The business’s fifty day moving average is $16.94 and its 200 day moving average is $16.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.76 billion, a PE ratio of 14.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.04. First Horizon had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 9.51%. The firm had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $821.63 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Horizon will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

First Horizon declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, October 29th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

First Horizon Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on FHN shares. Robert W. Baird set a $17.00 price objective on shares of First Horizon in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of First Horizon from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on First Horizon from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wedbush lowered First Horizon from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $20.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on First Horizon from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.38.

Insider Transactions at First Horizon

In other First Horizon news, Director Harry V. Barton, Jr. sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.92, for a total value of $199,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 166,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,323,452.80. This trade represents a 5.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David T. Popwell sold 100,974 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.77, for a total value of $1,996,255.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 519,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,278,937.02. This represents a 16.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Horizon

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in First Horizon by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,346,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $145,194,000 after purchasing an additional 61,397 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of First Horizon by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 20,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $317,000 after purchasing an additional 912 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 169.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,886,828 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,301,000 after buying an additional 1,185,772 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC grew its position in First Horizon by 365.7% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2,984 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in First Horizon by 2.5% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 223,685 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,474,000 after buying an additional 5,394 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.28% of the company’s stock.

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.