The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Trims Stock Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company trimmed its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 779,287 shares of the bank's stock after selling 17,567 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.82% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $19,661,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FFBC. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 1.8% in 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. Souders Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 0.9% during the third quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 72,038 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,818,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 5.2% during the third quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,525 shares of the bank's stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 23.1% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,340 shares of the bank's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 1.9% in the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 48,000 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,067,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Scott T. Crawley sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.31, for a total transaction of $87,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at $565,067.49. This represents a 13.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 932 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $27,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,720 shares in the company, valued at $2,241,600. This trade represents a 1.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,700 shares of company stock worth $335,429. Insiders own 2.04% of the company's stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Down 0.6 %

FFBC traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $29.53. 251,797 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 396,989. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $26.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.91. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $20.07 and a 1-year high of $31.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.73 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $302.82 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $214.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.55% and a return on equity of 10.32%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is 41.38%.

First Financial Bancorp. 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.