First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Shares Acquired by First Financial Bank Trust Division

First Financial Bank Trust Division grew its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 901,908 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 36,679 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bancorp. comprises 2.1% of First Financial Bank Trust Division's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. First Financial Bank Trust Division owned about 0.94% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $22,755,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 63.9% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 1,732 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the period. TFO Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 6,820.5% in the fourth quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,045 shares of the bank's stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 3,001 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 valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 627 shares in the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $77,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $96,000. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on FFBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Claude E. Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total transaction of $771,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 53,576 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,425,121.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.04% of the company's stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Down 0.2 %

FFBC stock traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $23.98. 302,471 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 365,797. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $25.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.47. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12-month low of $17.23 and a 12-month high of $28.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 19.67% and a return on equity of 10.69%. The business had revenue of $314.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $203.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from First Financial Bancorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.00%. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.71%.

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.