William Blair Investment Management LLC Boosts Stake in First Horizon Corporation $FHN

William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of First Horizon Corporation (NYSE:FHN) by 38.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,219,830 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,456,820 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in First Horizon were worth $118,020,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FHN. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of First Horizon in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $131,399,000. Azora Capital LP raised its position in First Horizon by 1,020.5% in the 2nd quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 2,610,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,337,000 after purchasing an additional 2,377,300 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in First Horizon in the third quarter worth $49,180,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in First Horizon by 45.0% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,738,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $142,855,000 after buying an additional 2,091,865 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Horizon by 102.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,709,434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,197,000 after buying an additional 865,109 shares during the last quarter. 80.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on First Horizon from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of First Horizon in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. National Bank Financial set a $27.00 price target on shares of First Horizon in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of First Horizon from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on shares of First Horizon from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.66.

First Horizon Trading Down 4.7%

NYSE:FHN opened at $23.74 on Friday. First Horizon Corporation has a 12 month low of $15.19 and a 12 month high of $26.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $24.59 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.05. The stock has a market cap of $11.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.63.

First Horizon (NYSE:FHN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.06. First Horizon had a net margin of 19.67% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The business had revenue of $888.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $863.87 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that First Horizon Corporation will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

First Horizon Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from First Horizon’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. First Horizon’s payout ratio is currently 31.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Anthony J. Restel sold 5,719 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.35, for a total transaction of $139,257.65. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 619,132 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,075,864.20. The trade was a 0.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

About First Horizon

First Horizon Corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, is a diversified financial services company providing an array of retail, commercial and wealth management solutions. As the largest bank-based financial services firm in Tennessee, First Horizon operates through a network of branches and digital platforms across the Southeastern United States, offering personal and business banking, mortgage origination and servicing, payment solutions and treasury management services.

Tracing its origins to the First National Bank of Memphis established in 1864, First Horizon has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to serve customers in Tennessee, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.