First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Shares Sold by AQR Capital Management LLC

AQR Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF - Free Report) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 236,960 shares of the bank's stock after selling 13,935 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.01% of First Financial worth $10,945,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in THFF. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial by 62.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,457 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,643,000 after purchasing an additional 14,349 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of First Financial by 10.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 230,332 shares of the bank's stock valued at $10,100,000 after purchasing an additional 22,287 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. First Financial Corp IN increased its stake in shares of First Financial by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 761,654 shares of the bank's stock worth $35,181,000 after buying an additional 8,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,580 shares of the bank's stock worth $673,000 after buying an additional 2,171 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.74% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Financial news, Director James O. Mcdonald acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $48.99 per share, with a total value of $48,990.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 9,462 shares in the company, valued at $463,543.38. This trade represents a 11.82% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Mark Allen Franklin acquired 1,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $52.53 per share, with a total value of $57,783.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 9,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at $517,157.85. This trade represents a 12.58% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 2,775 shares of company stock valued at $139,480 over the last 90 days. 3.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on THFF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $55.00 price target (up previously from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded shares of First Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $58.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of First Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th.

First Financial Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:THFF traded down $0.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $50.89. The company had a trading volume of 40,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 54,494. The stock has a market capitalization of $603.10 million, a P/E ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 0.41. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $47.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. First Financial Co. has a one year low of $34.61 and a one year high of $53.60.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $62.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.04 million. First Financial had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 8.77%. Equities research analysts expect that First Financial Co. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. First Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.16%.

First Financial Company Profile

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.