Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Reaffirms "Market Perform" Rating for First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF)

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "market perform" rating restated by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $55.00 target price on the bank's stock, up from their prior target price of $52.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective would indicate a potential upside of 5.71% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Raymond James upgraded First Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $54.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th.

First Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ THFF traded up $0.01 during trading on Thursday, reaching $52.03. The company had a trading volume of 134,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 53,240. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. First Financial has a twelve month low of $34.58 and a twelve month high of $53.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $47.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $45.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $614.47 million, a PE ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 0.51.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of THFF. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in First Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial during the 4th quarter worth $73,000. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of First Financial by 420.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the bank's stock worth $172,000 after buying an additional 3,165 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new stake in First Financial during the third quarter worth about $230,000. 72.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Financial Company Profile

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.