Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) Now Covered by Analysts at DA Davidson

DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) in a research note released on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $24.00 price target on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Fulton Financial from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Fulton Financial in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.50.

Fulton Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FULT opened at $21.23 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a PE ratio of 10.21 and a beta of 0.86. Fulton Financial has a fifty-two week low of $14.32 and a fifty-two week high of $22.99. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Fulton Financial (NASDAQ:FULT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $336.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.80 million. Fulton Financial had a return on equity of 12.59% and a net margin of 20.68%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.48 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Fulton Financial will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

Fulton Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This is an increase from Fulton Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. Fulton Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.54%.

Fulton Financial announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to reacquire up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fulton Financial news, Director E Philip Wenger sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $97,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 85,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,671,075.35. This trade represents a 5.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FULT. DGS Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fulton Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $472,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Fulton Financial by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 826,275 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $15,972,000 after buying an additional 37,345 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Fulton Financial by 55.3% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 932,455 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,024,000 after buying an additional 331,922 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc grew its holdings in Fulton Financial by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 157,350 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,042,000 after acquiring an additional 31,569 shares during the period. Finally, Interval Partners LP raised its position in Fulton Financial by 66.0% in the fourth quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 562,337 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,870,000 after acquiring an additional 223,509 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.02% of the company’s stock.

Fulton Financial Company Profile

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.