First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results
by Tristan Rich · The Markets DailyFirst Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC – Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The bank reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.15, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $265.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $257.97 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 20.30%.
First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance
Shares of FFBC traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $29.86. 1,133,972 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 961,818. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 11.23 and a beta of 0.94. First Financial Bancorp. has a fifty-two week low of $22.55 and a fifty-two week high of $31.38. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.69.
First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.59%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research analysts have issued reports on FFBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Hovde Group increased their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Financial Bancorp. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.17.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on FFBC
Insider Activity at First Financial Bancorp.
In related news, CAO Karen B. Woods sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.28, for a total transaction of $302,800.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 63,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,936,527.12. This trade represents a 13.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.20, for a total value of $604,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 61,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,051.20. The trade was a 24.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 32,141 shares of company stock valued at $969,429 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.13% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of First Financial Bancorp.
A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 26,260 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $657,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 11,858 shares of the bank’s stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 498 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 0.5% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 117,088 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,956,000 after buying an additional 606 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC lifted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.9% during the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 17,380 shares of the bank’s stock worth $422,000 after buying an additional 646 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 0.8% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 88,227 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,140,000 after buying an additional 717 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.23% of the company’s stock.
About First Financial Bancorp.
First Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ: FFBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the parent of First Financial Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking services through a network of more than 100 full-service banking centers and mortgage offices across Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Its core mission centers on delivering personalized relationship banking to businesses, individuals and public sector clients.
First Financial Bank’s product portfolio includes deposit solutions such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside a range of lending offerings that cover commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, home mortgages and home equity lines of credit.