Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 7,590 Shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its stake in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) by 29.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,352 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 7,590 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned 0.16% of First Financial worth $848,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in First Financial in the fourth quarter worth $73,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in First Financial by 420.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the bank’s stock worth $172,000 after purchasing an additional 3,165 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of First Financial during the fourth quarter worth $205,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new position in shares of First Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $230,000. 72.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $55.00 target price (up from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised First Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial

In other First Financial news, insider Mark Allen Franklin purchased 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $52.53 per share, for a total transaction of $57,783.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 9,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $517,157.85. The trade was a 12.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director James O. Mcdonald purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $48.99 per share, with a total value of $48,990.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 9,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $463,543.38. The trade was a 11.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 2,195 shares of company stock worth $111,625 over the last quarter. 3.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

First Financial Trading Down 0.7 %

THFF opened at $48.64 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $576.53 million, a P/E ratio of 12.16 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. First Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $34.58 and a 12 month high of $53.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.44.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.08. First Financial had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 15.37%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First Financial Co. will post 5.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. First Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.00%.

About First Financial

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.