Norges Bank Buys New Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 291,167 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $7,827,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.30% of First Financial Bancorp. as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FFBC. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. in the third quarter worth $30,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 221.9% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,717 shares of the bank's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,873 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Financial Bancorp.

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total value of $189,392.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $277,633.72. The trade was a 40.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ FFBC traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $22.14. 20,159 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 416,402. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12-month low of $20.59 and a 12-month high of $31.18. The firm has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.22 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $25.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. As a group, analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is 40.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FFBC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.