First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

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Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the five research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $29.40.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on FFBC shares. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $28.00 price target (up previously from $27.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Hovde Group assumed coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Tuesday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $31.00 price target for the company. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $27.00 price target on the stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

Shares of FFBC traded up $0.43 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $25.11. The company had a trading volume of 41,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,912. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.74. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12-month low of $21.10 and a 12-month high of $31.18. The company has a market capitalization of $2.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.04 and a beta of 0.98.

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

First Financial Bancorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This is a boost from First Financial Bancorp.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Archie M. Brown sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.79, for a total transaction of $309,875.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 240,891 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,971,687.89. This trade represents a 4.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 525,209 shares of the bank's stock worth $13,120,000 after purchasing an additional 13,341 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 43.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,522 shares of the bank's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. MQS Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $543,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 43.8% during the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 36,408 shares of the bank's stock worth $909,000 after purchasing an additional 11,098 shares during the period. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 53,747 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,445,000 after purchasing an additional 2,070 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company's stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Company 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.

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