Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) Announces Earnings Results

Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.03, Zacks reports. Fulton Financial had a return on equity of 12.75% and a net margin of 19.01%.The business had revenue of $336.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $336.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.48 EPS.

Fulton Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FULT opened at $20.51 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.74 and a beta of 0.85. Fulton Financial has a 52 week low of $14.32 and a 52 week high of $21.40.

Fulton Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.19 dividend. This is a boost from Fulton Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. Fulton Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.79%.

Insider Transactions at Fulton Financial

In other Fulton Financial news, Director E Philip Wenger sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total value of $97,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,671,075.35. This represents a 5.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fulton Financial

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its position in Fulton Financial by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 88,351 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,594,000 after purchasing an additional 741 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Fulton Financial by 69.0% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 777 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Fulton Financial by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP now owns 27,060 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $504,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Fulton Financial by 373.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,662 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,311 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Fulton Financial by 8.0% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 18,673 shares of the bank’s stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 1,380 shares during the last quarter. 72.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fulton Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 16th that allows the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to reacquire up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Fulton Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Fulton Financial from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Fulton Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fulton Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.90.

Fulton Financial Company Profile

Fulton Financial Corporation, trading on the NASDAQ under the ticker FULT, is the financial holding company for Fulton Bank, headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The company delivers a broad range of banking and financial services through its subsidiary, Fulton Bank, targeting both individual and corporate clients. Fulton Financial’s offerings include deposit accounts, lending solutions, treasury management, and specialized banking services designed to support personal wealth goals and business growth initiatives.

Through Fulton Bank, the company provides retail banking services such as checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, and home equity products.