James R. Shank Sells 7,600 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Stock

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total value of $189,392.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,141 shares in the company, valued at $277,633.72. The trade was a 40.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

NASDAQ FFBC opened at $24.75 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.31 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $20.59 and a twelve month high of $31.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $26.98 and a 200 day moving average of $26.87.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.88%. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FFBC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FFBC. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,961,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 38.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,186,286 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,887,000 after acquiring an additional 328,788 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,827,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 65.2% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 669,409 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,994,000 after acquiring an additional 264,083 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 713.5% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 265,843 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,149,000 after acquiring an additional 233,163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.