Fmr LLC Grows Position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Fmr LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 397.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 73,750 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 58,935 shares during the quarter. Fmr LLC owned 0.08% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $1,861,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FFBC. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2,976.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 23.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,340 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $96,000. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FFBC opened at $28.94 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.47 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.35. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $20.59 and a 52 week high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.32% and a net margin of 18.55%. The company had revenue of $302.82 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $214.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FFBC. Stephens upgraded First Financial Bancorp. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Scott T. Crawley sold 3,000 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.31, for a total value of $87,930.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 19,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $565,067.49. The trade was a 13.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 4,068 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.01, for a total value of $122,080.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 70,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,120,266.52. This trade represents a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,700 shares of company stock worth $335,429. Corporate insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

About First Financial Bancorp.

First Financial Bancorp. operates as the bank holding company for First Financial Bank that provides commercial banking and related services to individuals and businesses in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois. The company offers checking, savings, and money-market accounts; and accepts various deposit products, such as interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing accounts, time deposits, and cash management services for commercial customers.