S&P 500 (NYSE:SPY) component First Horizon National Corporation (NYSE:FHN) reported its results for the fourth quarter. First Horizon National, through its banking-related subsidiaries, provides financial services.

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First Horizon National Earnings Cheat Sheet for the Fourth Quarter.

Results: Net income for First Horizon National Corporation rose to $34.9 million (13 cents per share) vs. $14.5 million (20 cents per share) in the same quarter a year earlier. This is a more than twofold rise from the year earlier quarter.

Actual vs. Wall St. Expectations: FHN fell short of the mean analyst estimate of 14 cents per share.

Quoting Management: “2011 was another year of significant progress for First Horizon, and we’re well-positioned to continue that trend this year,” said Bryan Jordan, First Horizon chairman and CEO. “We’re ready to meet the continuing challenges of a slow economic recovery and a low interest rate environment. The dedicated professionals throughout our company are working hard to deepen relationships with our customers, earn new business and successfully execute our long-term strategic plan.”

Key Stats:

The company has now fallen short of estimates in the last two quarters. In the third quarter, it missed expectations by 4 cents with net income of 12 cents versus a mean estimate of net income of 16 cents per share.

Looking Forward: Analysts appear increasingly optimistic about the company’s results for the next quarter. The average estimate for the first quarter of the next fiscal year has moved up from 13 cents a share to 14 cents over the last thirty days. For the fiscal year, the average estimate has been unchanged at 51 cents a share.

Competitors to Watch: Pinnacle Financial Partners (NASDAQ:PNFP), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC), SunTrust Banks, Inc. (NYSE:STI), Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC), Green Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRNB), First Security Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSGI), PNC Financial Services (NYSE:PNC), Cadence Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:CADE), BancorpSouth, Inc. (NYSE:BXS), and BB&T Corporation (NYSE:BBT).

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(Company fundamentals provided by Xignite Financials. Earnings estimates provided by Zacks)

To contact the reporter on this story: Derek Hoffman at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com

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