First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC Shares Sold by Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP

Key Points

• Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP has reduced its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 60.8%, now owning 8,796 shares worth approximately $220,000.
• CEO Archie M. Brown sold 12,500 shares of the company's stock, which represents a 4.93% decrease in his ownership.
• First Financial Bancorp. recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25, increasing its annual dividend yield to 3.8%.

Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP reduced its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) by 60.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,796 shares of the bank's stock after selling 13,654 shares during the quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP's holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $220,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 58,585 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,923 shares of the bank's stock valued at $273,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 24.4% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the bank's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 43.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,522 shares of the bank's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 11,585 shares of the bank's stock worth $311,000 after buying an additional 822 shares during the period. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial Bancorp.

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, CEO Archie M. Brown sold 12,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.79, for a total value of $309,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 240,891 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,971,687.89. This trade represents a 4.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 4.1%

NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $26.55 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.54 billion, a PE ratio of 10.62 and a beta of 0.98. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52-week low of $21.10 and a 52-week high of $31.18. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $24.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $226.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $219.95 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 19.41% and a return on equity of 10.57%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.64 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is an increase from First Financial Bancorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is 38.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on FFBC shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $28.00 price objective (up from $27.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $29.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, June 27th. Truist Financial started coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised First Financial Bancorp. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 20th. Finally, Hovde Group started coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Tuesday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $31.00 price objective on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $29.40.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.

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