Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Invests $1.28 Million in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 47,765 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,284,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC owned about 0.05% of First Financial Bancorp. as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 12,269 shares of the bank's stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,879 shares of the bank's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 11,585 shares of the bank's stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 822 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,340 shares of the bank's stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 67,175 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,707,000 after buying an additional 975 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on FFBC. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Insider Activity

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total value of $189,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,141 shares in the company, valued at $277,633.72. This trade represents a 40.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

FFBC stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $23.94. The stock had a trading volume of 30,089 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,139. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.98 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $20.59 and a 52 week high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.63. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. The firm had revenue of $201.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $214.80 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.83%.

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.