First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Short Interest Up 5.9% in June

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,260,000 shares, a growth of 5.9% from the May 31st total of 1,190,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 325,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days. Currently, 1.4% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $21.83 on Thursday. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $17.23 and a twelve month high of $24.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a PE ratio of 8.80 and a beta of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average is $22.26 and its 200 day moving average is $22.31.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59. The firm had revenue of $287.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $201.79 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.74% and a return on equity of 11.22%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.76 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.21%. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In related news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 10,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.64, for a total value of $248,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 93,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,202,113.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,939,804 shares of the bank’s stock worth $259,820,000 after acquiring an additional 91,126 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,625,010 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $157,347,000 after purchasing an additional 155,097 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,163,204 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,626,000 after purchasing an additional 56,755 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 17.8% during the first quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 1,038,758 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $23,289,000 after buying an additional 157,190 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter valued at $15,348,000. 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.