As Tennessee's biggest bank prepares to take on a new name next week, the parent company of what is now known as First Tennessee Bank reported higher third quarter earnings today that beat Wall Street estimates.
First Horizon National Corp., which will place its First Horizon name on all of its 280 bank offices after the close of business on Oct. 25, said today its adjusted third quarter earnings totaled 43 cents per share, up 2% from the previous quarter and more than 19% ahead of comparable results a year ago.
The third quarter earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 42 cents per share by a penny per share. Nonetheless, shares of First Horizon were trading lower today in Nasdaq trading, shedding more than 3% of the company's value.
So far this year, First Horizon shares have added about 22.7% versus the S&P 500's gain of 19.5%.
"First Horizon's results this quarter demonstrate our ongoing progress in executing our strategic priorities as well as our ability to deliver solid earnings power, better efficiency, and balance sheet growth," said Bryan Jordan, First Horizon's chairman and CEO. "I am pleased that our revenue growth across the company along with our ability to closely manage expenses led to strong returns and profitability."
Average loan volume grew by 10% in the past year while deposits grew 5% in the past 12 months.
"In Southeast Tennessee, our loan and deposit growth is similar to the overall bank," said Chattanooga market president Jay Dale. "The local economy continues to grow, consumer demand is healthy, and our asset quality is strong."
First Tennessee is the biggest among the 28 commercial banks in metropolitan Chattanooga with assets of more than $2.3 billion as of June 30.
The earnings announcement today is the last for the 155-year-old bank under its First Tennessee name. In June, First Horizon announced it will align its family of businesses under its corporate First Horizon name and will put up the new bank signs during the final weekend of October.