First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,380,000 shares, a growth of 19.0% from the February 13th total of 1,160,000 shares. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 419,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 68.9% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,502 shares of the bank’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 221.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,717 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 1,873 shares during the period. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of FFBC stock remained flat at $24.90 during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The stock had a trading volume of 376,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 361,237. 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 market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.38 and a beta of 0.99. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.91. First Financial Bancorp. has a one year low of $20.59 and a one year high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is 40.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on FFBC shares. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

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.