First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Earns "Overweight" Rating from Stephens

Stephens restated their overweight rating on shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) in a research note published on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $33.00 price target on the bank's stock.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

FFBC stock traded down $0.26 during trading on Friday, hitting $27.73. The stock had a trading volume of 528,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 337,842. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $20.59 and a twelve month high of $31.18. The company's 50-day moving average price is $28.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.49. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $2.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.95 and a beta of 1.02.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.55% and a return on equity of 10.32%. As a group, research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In related news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 4,068 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.01, for a total transaction of $122,080.68. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 70,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,120,266.52. This represents a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider James R. Shank sold 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 15,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $404,951.16. The trade was a 19.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,700 shares of company stock worth $335,429 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.04% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. in the third quarter valued at $30,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2,976.9% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the bank's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 82.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,150 shares of the bank's stock valued at $138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,333 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% 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.