First Foundation (NASDAQ:FFWM) Shares Cross Below 50-Day Moving Average - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• First Foundation Inc.'s shares have crossed below their fifty-day moving average of $5.22, trading as low as $4.91 during recent trading sessions.
• Piper Sandler downgraded First Foundation's target price from $6.00 to $5.50 and assigned a "neutral" rating, while Wall Street Zen lowered its rating from "hold" to "sell."
• Institutional investors hold 73.10% of First Foundation's stock, with significant recent stake increases from firms like Prudential Financial and Creative Planning.

Shares of First Foundation Inc. (NASDAQ:FFWM - Get Free Report) passed below its 50 day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $5.22 and traded as low as $4.91. First Foundation shares last traded at $5.23, with a volume of 715,867 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on FFWM shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded First Foundation from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $7.00 price objective on First Foundation and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on First Foundation from $6.00 to $5.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st.

First Foundation Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $448.18 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.06 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $5.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Foundation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. North Reef Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of First Foundation by 182.7% during the 4th quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 4,386,861 shares of the bank's stock valued at $27,242,000 after buying an additional 2,835,000 shares during the period. FJ Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Foundation by 964.2% during the second quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 1,478,574 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,541,000 after acquiring an additional 1,339,637 shares during the period. Fortress Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in First Foundation by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Fortress Investment Group LLC now owns 4,038,750 shares of the bank's stock valued at $25,081,000 after buying an additional 714,000 shares during the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP acquired a new position in First Foundation in the fourth quarter valued at $2,462,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of First Foundation by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,368,965 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,711,000 after buying an additional 379,288 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.10% of the company's stock.

About First Foundation

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.