Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stock Position in First Foundation Inc. $FFWM

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in First Foundation Inc. by 8.3% during the first quarter, owning 4,141,752 shares valued at approximately $21.5 million.
• First Foundation's stock price rose by 1.9%, with a current trading price of $5.97, having a market cap of $491.84 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for First Foundation, with a consensus target price of $6.25 and one firm recently downgrading the stock to a "sell" rating.

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Foundation Inc. (NASDAQ:FFWM - Free Report) by 8.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,141,752 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 316,949 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 5.03% of First Foundation worth $21,496,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in First Foundation in the first quarter worth about $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of First Foundation by 90.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,039 shares of the bank's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 2,387 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of First Foundation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Foundation during the first quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of First Foundation by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 17,915 shares of the bank's stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 6,043 shares in the last quarter. 73.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Foundation Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:FFWM traded up $0.11 during trading on Thursday, reaching $6.09. 543,995 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 723,098. First Foundation Inc. has a 52-week low of $4.41 and a 52-week high of $8.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $5.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $501.32 million, a P/E ratio of -4.54 and a beta of 1.04.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $7.00 price objective on First Foundation and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of First Foundation from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First Foundation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Foundation presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $6.25.

First Foundation Company Profile

First Foundation Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides banking services, investment advisory, wealth management, and trust services to individuals, businesses, and other organizations in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Banking and Wealth Management. It offers a range of deposit products, including personal and business checking accounts, savings accounts, interest-bearing demand deposit accounts, money market accounts, and time certificate of deposits; and loan products consisting of multifamily and single family residential real estate loans, commercial real estate loans, commercial term loans, and line of credits, as well as consumer loans, such as personal installment loans and line of credits, and home equity line of credits.