Wells Fargo & Company MN Sells 65,591 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Wells Fargo & Company MN trimmed its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 43.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 86,139 shares of the bank's stock after selling 65,591 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned 0.09% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $2,315,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 491,232 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,394,000 after buying an additional 20,449 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 4th quarter valued at about $273,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,892,158 shares of the bank's stock worth $292,781,000 after buying an additional 72,367 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,304,922 shares of the bank's stock worth $35,076,000 after purchasing an additional 22,573 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 82.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,150 shares of the bank's stock valued at $138,000 after buying an additional 2,333 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FFBC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday.

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In other news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was 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 directly owns 11,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at $277,633.72. This represents a 40.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

Shares of FFBC traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $23.42. The company had a trading volume of 507,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,598. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $20.59 and a twelve month high of $31.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company's 50-day moving average is $24.44 and its 200-day moving average is $26.57. The company has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.76 and a beta of 0.85.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.63. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. The company had revenue of $201.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $214.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.59 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio is 39.83%.

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.