Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $35.56 and last traded at $35.34, with a volume of 24658 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $34.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FISI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Financial Institutions from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $36.00 target price (up from $34.00) on shares of Financial Institutions in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Financial Institutions from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Financial Institutions from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Financial Institutions to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Financial Institutions Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business’s fifty day moving average is $32.42 and its 200 day moving average is $31.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $691.36 million, a P/E ratio of 9.73 and a beta of 0.63.

Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.01. Financial Institutions had a net margin of 19.81% and a return on equity of 12.62%. The business had revenue of $64.12 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.99 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Financial Institutions, Inc. will post 3.3 EPS for the current year.

Financial Institutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. This is a positive change from Financial Institutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. Financial Institutions’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Financial Institutions

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PL Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Financial Institutions by 30.4% in the 3rd quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,774,886 shares of the bank’s stock worth $48,277,000 after purchasing an additional 413,376 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Financial Institutions by 412.7% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 53,366 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 42,957 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Financial Institutions by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 377,740 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,275,000 after purchasing an additional 34,906 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Financial Institutions by 94.6% in the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 459,798 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,507,000 after purchasing an additional 223,478 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Financial Institutions in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $444,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.45% of the company’s stock.

Financial Institutions Company Profile

Financial Institutions, Inc (NASDAQ: FISI) is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide tax-advantaged income to shareholders. The company invests primarily in investment-grade municipal obligations issued by states, municipalities and government agencies across the United States. By focusing on high-credit-quality bonds, Financial Institutions aims to deliver current income that is exempt from federal income tax.

In constructing its portfolio, the company may also utilize money market instruments and repurchase agreements to manage liquidity and facilitate efficient settlement.