JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 529,189 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,265,773 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 529,189 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $82,395,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 2,976.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 1,935 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in First Financial Bancorp. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $149,000. Finally, Eagle Ridge Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the third quarter worth approximately $210,000. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Down 1.6 %

FFBC opened at $26.46 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $28.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.87. First Financial Bancorp. has a fifty-two week low of $20.59 and a fifty-two week high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $302.82 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $214.00 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.67 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on FFBC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens raised shares of First Financial Bancorp. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 932 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $27,960.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,720 shares in the company, valued at $2,241,600. This represents a 1.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Scott T. Crawley sold 3,000 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.31, for a total value of $87,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $565,067.49. The trade was a 13.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,700 shares of company stock valued at $335,429. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. 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.