First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Shares Acquired by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 33.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 147,285 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 36,634 shares during the quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. owned about 0.15% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $3,959,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 491,232 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,394,000 after buying an additional 20,449 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter valued at $273,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 1.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,271,990 shares of the bank's stock valued at $57,333,000 after acquiring an additional 34,977 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 25.2% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 166,170 shares of the bank's stock worth $4,192,000 after acquiring an additional 33,464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,643,440 shares of the bank's stock worth $117,154,000 after purchasing an additional 39,655 shares during the period. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ:FFBC traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.54. The stock had a trading volume of 519,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,682. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $27.26 and a 200 day moving average of $26.97. The company has a market capitalization of $2.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23 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 company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FFBC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

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.