Fulton Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:FULT) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Fulton Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:FULT) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eight analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $20.90.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FULT. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Fulton Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Fulton Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Fulton Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Fulton Financial from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th.

Fulton Financial Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of FULT stock opened at $20.14 on Wednesday. Fulton Financial has a fifty-two week low of $14.32 and a fifty-two week high of $21.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $18.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 0.86.

Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 8th. The bank reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $236.96 million during the quarter. Fulton Financial had a return on equity of 12.75% and a net margin of 19.01%. Equities analysts predict that Fulton Financial will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fulton Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a $0.19 dividend. This is a boost from Fulton Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. Fulton Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 37.70%.

Fulton Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 16th that permits the company to buyback $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Fulton Financial by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 67,939 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 7,603 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fulton Financial by 14.4% during the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 82,644 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,490,000 after purchasing an additional 10,433 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P grew its stake in shares of Fulton Financial by 168.4% in the first quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 31,936 shares of the bank’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 20,036 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in Fulton Financial by 189.6% in the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 15,891 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 10,403 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fulton Financial during the 1st quarter worth $60,000. Institutional investors own 72.02% of the company’s stock.

About Fulton Financial

Fulton Financial Corporation, trading on the NASDAQ under the ticker FULT, is the financial holding company for Fulton Bank, headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The company delivers a broad range of banking and financial services through its subsidiary, Fulton Bank, targeting both individual and corporate clients. Fulton Financial’s offerings include deposit accounts, lending solutions, treasury management, and specialized banking services designed to support personal wealth goals and business growth initiatives.

Through Fulton Bank, the company provides retail banking services such as checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage loans, and home equity products.