JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reduces Stock Position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,265,773 shares of the bank's stock after selling 529,189 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 3.42% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $82,395,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FFBC. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 39.1% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 25,310 shares of the bank's stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 7,112 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 1.8% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,617 shares of the bank's stock valued at $591,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,652,000. Choreo LLC lifted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 176.3% in the second quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 127,326 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,820,000 after acquiring an additional 81,245 shares during the period. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.7% in the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 86,359 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,919,000 after acquiring an additional 3,093 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider James R. Shank sold 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.34, for a total value of $97,458.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $404,951.16. This represents a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 4,068 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 70,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,120,266.52. The trade was a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,700 shares of company stock valued at $335,429. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FFBC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens raised shares of First Financial Bancorp. from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of FFBC stock traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $26.73. 281,373 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 268,987. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company's 50-day moving average price is $28.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.91. The company has a market cap of $2.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 1.01. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $20.59 and a 12 month high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.55% and a return on equity of 10.32%. The business had revenue of $302.82 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $214.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 earnings per share. On average, equities 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is 41.38%.

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.