Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC Purchases 1,551,861 Shares of First Foundation Inc. (NASDAQ:FFWM)

Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Foundation Inc. (NASDAQ:FFWM - Free Report) by 115.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,898,343 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 1,551,861 shares during the quarter. First Foundation makes up 11.1% of Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Strategic Value Bank Partners LLC owned 3.52% of First Foundation worth $18,086,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of First Foundation by 8.5% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,759 shares of the bank's stock valued at $136,000 after purchasing an additional 1,632 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of First Foundation by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 23,338 shares of the bank's stock worth $146,000 after purchasing an additional 2,579 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in First Foundation by 5.4% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 52,660 shares of the bank's stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 2,680 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its holdings in First Foundation by 35.8% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 16,463 shares of the bank's stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 4,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of First Foundation by 3.8% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 132,807 shares of the bank's stock valued at $829,000 after buying an additional 4,820 shares during the last quarter. 73.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on FFWM. Stephens downgraded shares of First Foundation from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com downgraded First Foundation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Foundation presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $7.80.

First Foundation Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FFWM traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $7.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 361,262 shares, compared to its average volume of 603,907. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $7.33 and a 200 day moving average of $6.61. First Foundation Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.84 and a twelve month high of $11.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $639.04 million, a PE ratio of 46.18 and a beta of 1.34.

First Foundation Profile

First Foundation Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides banking services, investment advisory, wealth management, and trust services to individuals, businesses, and other organizations in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Banking and Wealth Management. It offers a range of deposit products, including personal and business checking accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing demand deposit accounts, money market accounts, and time certificate of deposits; and loan products consisting of multifamily and single family residential real estate loans, commercial real estate loans, commercial term loans, and line of credits, as well as consumer loans, such as personal installment loans and line of credits, and home equity line of credits.