Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $33.00 and last traded at $32.63, with a volume of 19400 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Financial Institutions from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Financial Institutions in a report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Financial Institutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

Financial Institutions Stock Down 0.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. The business’s 50 day moving average is $29.13 and its 200-day moving average is $27.38. The stock has a market cap of $651.31 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.64 and a beta of 0.72.

Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The bank reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $63.85 million for the quarter. Financial Institutions had a negative net margin of 2.93% and a positive return on equity of 11.10%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Financial Institutions, Inc. will post 3.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Financial Institutions Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. Financial Institutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -90.51%.

Financial Institutions announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, September 22nd that permits the company to buyback $1.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 0.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. PL Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Financial Institutions by 153.3% in the first quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,261,010 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,475,000 after purchasing an additional 763,259 shares during the period. Rhino Investment Partners Inc grew its stake in shares of Financial Institutions by 19.9% in the first quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 313,082 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,815,000 after buying an additional 52,031 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Financial Institutions in the first quarter valued at $1,179,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Financial Institutions by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 477,865 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $12,274,000 after buying an additional 27,770 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Financial Institutions by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 24,489 shares of the bank’s stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 1,157 shares in the last quarter. 60.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Financial Institutions

Financial Institutions, Inc operates as a holding company for the Five Star Bank, a chartered bank that provides banking and financial services to individuals, municipalities, and businesses in New York. The company provides checking and savings account programs, including money market accounts, certificates of deposit, sweep investments, and individual retirement and other qualified plan accounts, as well as NOW accounts.