Share Buyback Plan Initiated by First Horizon (NYSE:FHN)

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, October 27th, RTT News reports. The company plans to buyback $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 11.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

First Horizon Stock Down 1.7%

FHN stock opened at $20.73 on Thursday. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $15.19 and a fifty-two week high of $23.70. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.99. The stock has a market cap of $10.53 billion, a PE ratio of 12.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.67.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $849.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $848.08 million. First Horizon had a net margin of 18.08% and a return on equity of 11.03%. First Horizon’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.42 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Horizon will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

First Horizon Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. First Horizon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FHN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and set a $20.00 price objective (down previously from $26.00) on shares of First Horizon in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Horizon news, EVP David T. Popwell sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.50, for a total transaction of $2,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 462,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,408,072.50. This trade represents a 17.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

First Horizon Company Profile

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.