First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Holdings Lowered by Truist Financial Corp

Truist Financial Corp reduced its stake in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 13.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,077 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,195 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $313,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in First Financial Bancorp. during the second quarter valued at about $213,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC lifted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 66.5% in the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 55,865 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,241,000 after acquiring an additional 22,305 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 162.4% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 242,187 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 149,896 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $300,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $264,000. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider Claude E. Davis sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total transaction of $771,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 53,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,425,121.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

NASDAQ FFBC opened at $26.04 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1 year low of $17.23 and a 1 year high of $28.25. The company has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a PE ratio of 10.50 and a beta of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $25.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.74.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 19.67% and a return on equity of 10.69%. The business had revenue of $314.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $203.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This is a boost from First Financial Bancorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.