First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Shares Acquired by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF - Free Report) by 10.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 230,332 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 22,287 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 1.95% of First Financial worth $10,100,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial by 62.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,457 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,643,000 after purchasing an additional 14,349 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 273,544 shares of the bank's stock valued at $11,997,000 after purchasing an additional 4,743 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of First Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $279,000. Dean Investment Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,856,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial by 18.6% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 13,704 shares of the bank's stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 2,154 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.74% of the company's stock.

First Financial Stock Up 1.5 %

First Financial stock traded up $0.64 during trading on Monday, reaching $44.09. The stock had a trading volume of 39,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 37,781. First Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $34.58 and a 52-week high of $51.87. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $47.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market cap of $520.61 million, a PE ratio of 11.95 and a beta of 0.51.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.17). First Financial had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 14.86%. The company had revenue of $82.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.95 million. On average, analysts predict that First Financial Co. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.63%. This is a boost from First Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. First Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Raymond James raised shares of First Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th.

First Financial 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.