Foundry Partners LLC Boosts Stock Position in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

Foundry Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) by 1.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 57,630 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the quarter. Foundry Partners LLC’s holdings in First Financial were worth $2,527,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of First Financial by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 729,676 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,910,000 after purchasing an additional 4,662 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Financial by 15.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 302,323 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,150,000 after purchasing an additional 40,726 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in First Financial by 19.5% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 190,126 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,012,000 after acquiring an additional 30,986 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial by 6.5% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 127,791 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,713,000 after purchasing an additional 7,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in First Financial by 2.0% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 102,269 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,772,000 after buying an additional 2,046 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.74% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Price Performance

THFF stock opened at $49.00 on Friday. First Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $34.58 and a 52-week high of $50.63. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $578.69 million, a P/E ratio of 13.28 and a beta of 0.47.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.17). First Financial had a net margin of 14.86% and a return on equity of 8.10%. The business had revenue of $82.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $57.95 million. Research analysts expect that First Financial Co. will post 3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. First Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on First Financial from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

About First Financial

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.