Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 109,570 Shares of First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in First Horizon Co. (NYSE:FHN) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,269,348 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 109,570 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.62% of First Horizon worth $65,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FHN. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in First Horizon by 43.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 948,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,724,000 after buying an additional 285,108 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of First Horizon by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 868,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,482,000 after acquiring an additional 100,359 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of First Horizon by 128.4% in the 3rd quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 52,612 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $817,000 after purchasing an additional 29,581 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in First Horizon in the 4th quarter worth $453,000. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in First Horizon during the fourth quarter valued at $304,000. 80.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FHN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of First Horizon in a report on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of First Horizon from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Raymond James increased their price objective 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. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Horizon presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.04.

Insider Activity

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

First Horizon Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE FHN opened at $22.18 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. First Horizon Co. has a 12-month low of $13.72 and a 12-month high of $22.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $21.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.92.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $0.32 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Horizon Co. will post 1.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Horizon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.12%.

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

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.