First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of First Horizon (NYSE:FHN - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Monday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of First Horizon in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of First Horizon in a report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America upped their price objective on First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on First Horizon from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on First Horizon from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $22.23.

First Horizon Price Performance

Shares of First Horizon stock traded down $1.34 on Monday, hitting $15.87. 5,994,184 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,195,404. First Horizon has a 1-year low of $13.72 and a 1-year high of $22.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $20.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.40.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.05. First Horizon had a return on equity of 10.10% and a net margin of 15.38%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Horizon will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. First Horizon's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.12%.

Insider Transactions at First Horizon

In other news, CEO D Bryan Jordan sold 109,980 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.13, for a total value of $2,323,877.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,861,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,330,980.53. This trade represents a 5.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Horizon

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of First Horizon by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 37,131,162 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $747,822,000 after buying an additional 7,715,191 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in First Horizon by 18.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,236,784 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $410,789,000 after purchasing an additional 4,116,486 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in First Horizon by 102.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 21,285,306 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $428,686,000 after acquiring an additional 10,763,349 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in First Horizon by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 19,869,403 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $400,173,000 after buying an additional 97,429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in First Horizon by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,346,924 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $145,194,000 after purchasing an additional 61,397 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.