Blair William & Co. IL Makes New Investment in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

Blair William & Co. IL acquired a new stake in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 8,220 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $380,000. Blair William & Co. IL owned approximately 0.07% of First Financial as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new position in shares of First Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in First Financial in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in First Financial in the 4th quarter worth $73,000. FMR LLC lifted its position in First Financial by 420.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the bank's stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 3,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC bought a new stake in First Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. 72.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Financial Stock Performance

THFF stock traded up $1.81 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $45.21. 126,862 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 52,435. First Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $34.58 and a twelve month high of $53.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market capitalization of $535.87 million, a P/E ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $49.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.40.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.08. First Financial had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 15.37%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Financial Co. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. First Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on THFF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $55.00 price objective (up previously from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised First Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $58.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of First Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $54.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Mark Allen Franklin acquired 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $52.53 per share, with a total value of $57,783.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 9,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at $517,157.85. This trade represents a 12.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director James O. Mcdonald acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.99 per share, for a total transaction of $48,990.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 9,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $463,543.38. This trade represents a 11.82 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 2,195 shares of company stock worth $111,625. 3.69% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About First Financial

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.