Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI) Receives $33.67 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:FISI) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the five ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $33.6667.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on FISI shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Financial Institutions in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Financial Institutions from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Zacks Research raised Financial Institutions to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $34.00 price target on shares of Financial Institutions in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Financial Institutions from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday.

Financial Institutions Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FISI opened at $31.97 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $29.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.61. The company has a market cap of $643.56 million, a PE ratio of -23.34 and a beta of 0.72. Financial Institutions has a twelve month low of $20.97 and a twelve month high of $33.00.

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

Financial Institutions declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, September 22nd that allows the company to buyback $1.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to buy up to 0.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Financial Institutions Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Financial Institutions’s dividend payout ratio is -90.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Financial Institutions

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PL Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings 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 valued at $48,277,000 after acquiring an additional 413,376 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Financial Institutions by 3.8% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,095,428 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,796,000 after purchasing an additional 40,240 shares during the period. Fourthstone LLC raised its stake in Financial Institutions by 54.8% in the second quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 846,661 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,742,000 after purchasing an additional 299,574 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in Financial Institutions by 0.5% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 778,821 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,000,000 after purchasing an additional 3,650 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Financial Institutions by 34.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 736,825 shares of the bank’s stock worth $20,042,000 after buying an additional 187,298 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.45% of the company’s stock.

About Financial Institutions

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.