Financial Institutions (NASDAQ:FISI) Shares Gap Up on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Shares of Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $24.06, but opened at $25.46. Financial Institutions shares last traded at $25.92, with a volume of 7,320 shares changing hands.

The bank reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.07. Financial Institutions had a negative net margin of 6.69% and a positive return on equity of 11.12%. The business had revenue of $57.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.14 million.

Financial Institutions Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Financial Institutions’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.88%. Financial Institutions’s payout ratio is -85.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on FISI shares. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Financial Institutions in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Financial Institutions from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Financial Institutions from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Financial Institutions

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Financial Institutions by 2.0% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 354,685 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,036,000 after buying an additional 7,045 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Financial Institutions by 48.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,798 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,141,000 after buying an additional 14,606 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Financial Institutions by 32.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 18,108 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $461,000 after buying an additional 4,461 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Financial Institutions by 72.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 25,345 shares of the bank’s stock worth $646,000 after purchasing an additional 10,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Courier Capital LLC lifted its stake in Financial Institutions by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 352,126 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,610,000 after purchasing an additional 1,887 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.45% of the company’s stock.

Financial Institutions Stock Down 0.2 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $510.59 million, a P/E ratio of -17.51 and a beta of 0.68.

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.