First Hawaiian (NASDAQ:FHB) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

First Hawaiian, Inc. (NASDAQ:FHB) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $29.27 and last traded at $29.3720, with a volume of 64465 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.96.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on FHB shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on First Hawaiian from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Hawaiian from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on First Hawaiian from $29.00 to $25.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on First Hawaiian from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered First Hawaiian from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $27.56.

First Hawaiian Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.93, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s 50-day moving average is $27.26 and its 200 day moving average is $26.31.

First Hawaiian (NASDAQ:FHB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.02. First Hawaiian had a net margin of 24.44% and a return on equity of 10.39%. The business had revenue of $220.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $223.59 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.47 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Hawaiian, Inc. will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Hawaiian Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. First Hawaiian’s payout ratio is 45.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Hawaiian

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Hawaiian by 409.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 89,506 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,265,000 after purchasing an additional 71,927 shares during the period. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its stake in shares of First Hawaiian by 94.2% in the third quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 51,139 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,270,000 after buying an additional 24,805 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Hawaiian in the fourth quarter worth $1,243,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Hawaiian by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,457,575 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $365,777,000 after buying an additional 358,632 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in First Hawaiian during the 4th quarter valued at $3,028,000. 97.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About First Hawaiian

First Hawaiian, Inc is the oldest and largest bank in Hawaii, operating as the bank holding company for First Hawaiian Bank. Established in 1858, the company offers a full suite of financial services to individual, business and institutional clients. Its product portfolio includes consumer and commercial lending, deposit accounts, treasury and cash management, foreign exchange and trade finance, as well as wealth management and trust services.

First Hawaiian serves customers through an extensive network of branches, ATMs and digital channels across the Hawaiian Islands, Guam, Saipan and American Samoa.