First Horizon Corporation (NYSE:FHN) Short Interest Down 20.2% in March

First Horizon Corporation (NYSE:FHN) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 10,025,695 shares, a decline 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 volume of 5,460,338 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Insider Transactions at First Horizon

In related news, EVP Anthony J. Restel sold 5,719 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 619,132 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,075,864.20. This represents a 0.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Horizon

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in First Horizon by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 14,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $335,000 after buying an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in First Horizon by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 68,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,641,000 after buying an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in First Horizon by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 40,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $963,000 after buying an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Horizon by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 15,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $378,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the last quarter. 80.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Horizon News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer highlighted FHN as “still a great bank to own” while rotating into regional banks, giving retail momentum and positive sentiment to the stock. Jim Cramer on First Horizon
• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $26 and kept a Market Perform rating, which supports near-term upside expectations and helped buying interest. KBW Issues Positive Forecast for First Horizon
• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat estimates: EPS $0.53 vs. $0.49 consensus, driven by higher net interest income and fee income; analysts note solid profitability and resilient credit metrics (loan growth, low CRE exposure) that support valuation. First Horizon Q1 Review
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage consensus remains around a “Hold”/neutral stance (average rating: Hold), so while some shops lifted targets, broad analyst sentiment is not strongly bullish. Average Rating of Hold by Brokerages
• Neutral Sentiment: DA Davidson reaffirmed a neutral rating and a $26 price target, echoing cautious optimism but not an upgrade to buy. DA Davidson Reaffirms Neutral
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate staffing update: First Horizon Bank announced hires and a promotion in the Acadiana market — operationally positive but unlikely to move the stock materially. First Horizon Bank Announces New Hires
• Negative Sentiment: Some reports flagged rising expenses and slightly weaker capital ratios despite the revenue beat, which could cap multiple expansion until follow-through on cost control and capital metrics. Zacks: Q1 Earnings Beat but Rising Expenses

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on FHN. Zacks Research cut First Horizon from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. UBS Group downgraded First Horizon from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $25.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, First Horizon presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.45.

First Horizon Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE FHN traded up $0.30 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $24.28. 8,666,700 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,445,557. First Horizon has a 1 year low of $16.44 and a 1 year high of $26.56. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $23.54 and a 200 day moving average of $23.17. The stock has a market cap of $11.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.62. 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) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $865.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $869.49 million. First Horizon had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 20.54%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that First Horizon will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

First Horizon Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from First Horizon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio is 34.00%.

About First Horizon

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.