PharVision Advisers LLC Makes New Investment in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 10,407 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $280,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 140.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 190,742 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,812,000 after purchasing an additional 111,309 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,340 shares of the bank's stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 82.8% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. during the 4th quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 308,749 shares of the bank's stock valued at $8,299,000 after purchasing an additional 15,037 shares during the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the business'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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $277,633.72. The trade was a 40.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of FFBC stock traded up $0.31 on Tuesday, reaching $24.30. The company had a trading volume of 51,966 shares, compared to its average volume of 418,991. The stock has a market cap of $2.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.12 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $23.81 and a 200-day moving average of $26.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $20.59 and a 12 month high of $31.18.

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

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.'s payout ratio is presently 39.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on FFBC. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $27.00 target price for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

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.