** Hovde Group raises price target on regional lender Pinnacle Financial PNFP.O to $115 from $106

** New PT represents a 27.6% upside to the stock's last close

** Brokerage raises PT citing early success in Synovus Financial SNV.N adopting PNFP's model and success with new hires

** In July, PNFP and SNV agreed to combine in an $8.6 billion all-stock deal, forming one of the largest regional banks in the southeastern United States

** Hovde analysts now think the PNFP-SNV combination will outperform expectations over time, and the stock’s current discount could narrow as the market sees the benefits of the merger

** 7 of 14 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher and 7 hold; their median PT is $108.50 — data compiled by LSEG

** As of last close, PNFP down 21.2% YTD

(Reporting by Pragyan Kalita in Bengaluru)

((Pragyan.Kalita@thomsonreuters.com))