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 accepts various deposit products, such as interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing accounts, time deposits, and cash management services for commercial customers. It also provides real estate loans secured by residential property, such as one to four family residential housing units or commercial property comprising owner-occupied and/or investor income producing real estate consisting of apartments, shopping centers, or office buildings; commercial and industrial loans for various purposes, including inventory, receivables, and equipment; consumer loans comprising new and used vehicle loans, second mortgages on residential real estate, and unsecured loans; and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers commercial financing to the insurance industry, registered investment advisors, certified public accountants, indirect auto finance companies, and restaurant franchisees. Further, it provides a range of trust and wealth management services; and lease and equipment financing services. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated 139 full service banking centers, 29 of which are leased facilities. It operates 62 banking centers in Ohio, three banking centers in Illinois, 62 banking centers in Indiana, and 12 banking centers in Kentucky. First Financial Bancorp. was founded in 1863 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.
First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance
FFBC Stock traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $22.60. The company had a trading volume of 271,217 shares, compared to its average volume of 327,530. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $18.75 and a 1-year high of $26.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $20.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.57 and a beta of 1.08.
First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 21st. The bank reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 30.36% and a return on equity of 9.61%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.58 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.
First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 1st will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 31st. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.40%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Separately, Stephens boosted their price target on First Financial Bancorp. to $25.00 in a research note on Monday, July 25th.
Insider Activity
In related news, Director William G. Barron sold 3,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.13, for a total transaction of $70,455.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 80,796 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,626,423.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.11% of the company's stock.