First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Holdings Reduced by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 3.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,200 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,800 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $1,166,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 23.9% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 305,942 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,917,000 after acquiring an additional 58,963 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 115.9% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 58,070 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,264,000 after purchasing an additional 31,170 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the first quarter valued at about $752,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 76.6% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 46,793 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,049,000 after purchasing an additional 20,299 shares during the period. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 625,822 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,031,000 after buying an additional 39,870 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider James R. Shank sold 3,700 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.34, for a total value of $97,458.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,374 shares in the company, valued at $404,951.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider James R. Shank sold 3,700 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.34, for a total value of $97,458.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $404,951.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Claude E. Davis sold 29,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total transaction of $771,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 53,576 shares in the company, valued at $1,425,121.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of FFBC stock opened at $25.66 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a fifty-two week low of $18.65 and a fifty-two week high of $28.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.55% and a return on equity of 10.32%. The company had revenue of $302.82 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $214.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.67 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on FFBC shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th.

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.