Edgestream Partners L.P. Takes Position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 110,651 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $2,792,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. owned approximately 0.12% of First Financial Bancorp. at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of FFBC. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $300,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 10.1% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 33,425 shares of the bank's stock worth $743,000 after acquiring an additional 3,067 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. in the second quarter worth approximately $762,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 162.4% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 242,187 shares of the bank's stock worth $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 149,896 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 2nd quarter valued at $265,000. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In other news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 932 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $27,960.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,241,600. The trade was a 1.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider James R. Shank sold 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.34, for a total value of $97,458.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 15,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $404,951.16. The trade was a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,700 shares of company stock worth $335,429. 2.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:FFBC traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $29.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 432,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 375,352. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a one year low of $20.59 and a one year high of $31.18. The business's 50-day moving average is $26.66 and its 200-day moving average is $24.92.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 in the prior year, the company posted $0.67 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.28%. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.38%.

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.