Friday Earnings Wrap-Up: Synchrony Financial (SYF), Comerica Incorporated (CMA), First Horizon National Corp (FHN)

Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA)’s stock has risen by more than 7% so far this year. Despite the appreciation smart money had a bearish outlook towards the $8.91 billion financial services company during the first quarter. Among the funds that we track, a total of 32 firms had invested $678.44 million in Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) at the end of the first trimester, as opposed to 39 funds with $912.01 million at the end of the previous quarter. Third Avenue Management, led by Martin Whitman was the largest investor among these, holding 3.15 million shares valued at $142.01 million.

The third financial company to release earnings this morning is First Horizon National Corp (NYSE:FHN), which beat both the top and bottom line estimates by posting EPS of $0.22 against the $0.20 estimate, and revenues of $296.94 million, which were $7.17 million ahead of estimates. On a year-over-year basis, average core deposits increased by 13%, while loans grew by 16%. Noninterest income also rose by 10% from last quarter mainly driven by fees from deposits, brokerage, and trusts.

In the first three months of the year First Horizon National Corp (NYSE:FHN) appreciated by more than 5%, which was a reflection of the unequivocal support from the hedge fund industry. At the end of March the firms invested in the company had increased to 17 with $167.70 million in shares, from 13 funds with $105.91 million in holdings at the end of last year. Ric Dillon‘s Diamond Hill Capital led the pack, owning 2.90 million shares valued at $41.46 million.

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