First Hawaiian (NASDAQ:FHB) Shares Gap Up on Strong Earnings

First Hawaiian, Inc. (NASDAQ:FHB) gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $26.79, but opened at $27.81. First Hawaiian shares last traded at $27.58, with a volume of 37,235 shares trading hands.

The bank reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.01. First Hawaiian had a net margin of 18.83% and a return on equity of 8.83%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.37 earnings per share.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on FHB shares. Stephens started coverage on shares of First Hawaiian in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of First Hawaiian from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of First Hawaiian from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of First Hawaiian from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of First Hawaiian from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Hawaiian currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.86.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Hawaiian

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FHB. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in First Hawaiian by 96.8% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 478,262 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,072,000 after acquiring an additional 235,253 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in shares of First Hawaiian in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,736,000. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of First Hawaiian by 20.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 913,400 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,145,000 after purchasing an additional 154,136 shares during the period. Reinhart Partners LLC. raised its position in shares of First Hawaiian by 6.1% in the third quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 2,461,319 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,980,000 after purchasing an additional 141,327 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of First Hawaiian by 1.2% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 10,624,759 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $245,963,000 after purchasing an additional 122,599 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.63% of the company’s stock.

First Hawaiian Stock Up 3.1 %

The company has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.78 and a beta of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $26.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.00.

About First Hawaiian

First Hawaiian, Inc operates as a bank holding company for First Hawaiian Bank that provides a range of banking products and services to consumer and commercial customers in the United States. It operates in three segments: Retail Banking, Commercial Banking, and Treasury and Other. The company offers various deposit products, including checking, savings, and time deposit accounts, and other deposit accounts.