First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy” for First Financial Bankshares, with two buy ratings, one strong-buy rating and two holds. The average 12-month price target is $36.75, while recent targets range from $35 to $39.
• The bank’s latest quarterly results matched expectations, with earnings per share of $0.50 and revenue of $172.76 million. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $2.04.
• First Financial Bankshares declared a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, or $0.88 annualized, representing a 2.5% yield and a 47.06% payout ratio.

Shares of First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $36.75.

A number of analysts have commented on FFIN shares. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a "neutral" rating and set a $35.00 price objective (up from $34.00) on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First Financial Bankshares from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of First Financial Bankshares stock opened at $34.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $5.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69 and a beta of 0.81. First Financial Bankshares has a 12-month low of $28.11 and a 12-month high of $38.12. The business's 50 day moving average is $34.36 and its 200-day moving average is $32.57.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. The business had revenue of $172.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $173.03 million. First Financial Bankshares had a net margin of 31.03% and a return on equity of 14.00%. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Financial Bankshares will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 14th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 14th. First Financial Bankshares's payout ratio is 47.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Financial Bankshares news, Director Murray Hamilton Edwards acquired 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $33.18 per share, for a total transaction of $33,180.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 44,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,480,956.12. This represents a 2.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FFIN. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in First Financial Bankshares by 3,042,660.3% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 21,512,315 shares of the bank's stock valued at $642,573,000 after acquiring an additional 21,511,608 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First Financial Bankshares during the 4th quarter valued at $51,227,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 4,145.8% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,709,631 shares of the bank's stock worth $51,067,000 after purchasing an additional 1,669,365 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 170.9% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,101,028 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,615,000 after purchasing an additional 694,534 shares during the period. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 460.0% during the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 503,246 shares of the bank's stock worth $15,032,000 after purchasing an additional 413,376 shares during the period. 69.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Financial Bankshares Company Profile

First Financial Bankshares, Inc is a regional bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its primary subsidiary, First Financial Bank, the company offers a full suite of banking products and services to individual, small business and commercial clients. With roots dating back to 1863, First Financial has cultivated a strong community banking heritage, combining personalized service with modern financial solutions.

The company's core business activities include commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, treasury management, mortgage origination and servicing, and wealth management.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source