Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 68.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,428 shares of the bank's stock after selling 109,411 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned about 0.05% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $1,329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.3% during 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 period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth about $273,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,892,158 shares of the bank's stock worth $292,781,000 after purchasing an additional 72,367 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings 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 boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 82.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,150 shares of the bank's stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,333 shares during the period. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $27.00 target price for the company. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Down 0.2%

FFBC stock traded down $0.05 during trading on Monday, reaching $25.05. The company had a trading volume of 234,430 shares, compared to its average volume of 420,544. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $20.59 and a 52 week high of $31.18. The company has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.44 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day moving average of $23.86 and a 200 day moving average of $26.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The company had revenue of $201.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $214.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. First Financial Bancorp.'s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is currently 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.