First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) Now Covered by Cantor Fitzgerald

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on First Financial Bankshares with a "neutral" rating and a price target of $39.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.81% from its previous close.
• First Financial Bankshares reported earnings per share of $0.47 for the last quarter, surpassing estimates by $0.02, with revenues of $156.60 million.
• Insider Michael B. Denny increased his stake in First Financial Bankshares by purchasing 5,000 shares at an average price of $36.02, raising his total ownership to 108,708 shares.

Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN - Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $39.00 price objective on the bank's stock.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on FFIN. Hovde Group increased their price objective on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on First Financial Bankshares from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.20.

First Financial Bankshares Price Performance

NASDAQ FFIN traded down $0.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $35.44. The stock had a trading volume of 122,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 528,916. The firm's 50 day moving average is $36.20 and its 200 day moving average is $35.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.58 and a beta of 0.89. First Financial Bankshares has a twelve month low of $30.58 and a twelve month high of $44.66.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $156.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $156.41 million. First Financial Bankshares had a net margin of 31.01% and a return on equity of 14.69%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Financial Bankshares will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. First Financial Bankshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FFIN. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its stake in First Financial Bankshares by 2.2% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 13,358 shares of the bank's stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 1.0% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 30,763 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,105,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 0.8% in the first quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 36,000 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,293,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Numerai GP LLC boosted its stake in First Financial Bankshares by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Numerai GP LLC now owns 18,033 shares of the bank's stock worth $650,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,825 shares of the bank's stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. 69.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Financial Bankshares

First Financial Bankshares, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides commercial banking products and services in Texas. The company offers checking, savings and time deposits; automated teller machines, drive-in, and night deposit services; safe deposit facilities, remote deposit capture, internet banking, mobile banking, payroll cards, funds transfer, and performing other customary commercial banking services; securities brokerage services; and trust and wealth management services, including wealth management, estates administration, oil and gas management, testamentary trusts, revocable and irrevocable trusts, and agency accounts.