Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 23,987 Shares of First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its stake in shares of First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) by 1.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,738,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 23,987 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.33% of First Horizon worth $27,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in First Horizon by 6.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 112,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,778,000 after buying an additional 6,656 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in First Horizon by 57.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 12,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $191,000 after buying an additional 4,534 shares during the period. Leeward Investments LLC MA increased its position in shares of First Horizon by 1.1% during the second quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 2,222,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,042,000 after purchasing an additional 24,695 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in First Horizon during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $281,000. Finally, Sunpointe LLC purchased a new position in First Horizon during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $296,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.28% of the company’s stock.

First Horizon Price Performance

NYSE FHN opened at $20.20 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.77. First Horizon Co. has a twelve month low of $12.95 and a twelve month high of $21.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.71 billion, a PE ratio of 14.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.96.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.04. First Horizon had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 9.51%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $821.63 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.27 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that First Horizon Co. will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

First Horizon announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan 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 buy up to 10.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.48%.

Insider Transactions at First Horizon

In other news, EVP David T. Popwell sold 100,974 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.77, for a total value of $1,996,255.98. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 519,926 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,278,937.02. This represents a 16.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 166,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,323,452.80. The trade was a 5.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on FHN shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of First Horizon from $18.50 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on First Horizon from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wedbush downgraded shares of First Horizon from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $17.00 price objective on First Horizon in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Horizon currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.69.

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.