First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) Short Interest Update

First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,960,000 shares, an increase of 5.2% from the November 30th total of 7,570,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 479,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 16.6 days. Currently, 5.8% of the company’s shares are sold short.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ FFIN opened at $35.57 on Friday. First Financial Bankshares has a one year low of $27.06 and a one year high of $44.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $39.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.53 and a beta of 0.81.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.39. The company had revenue of $142.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.25 million. First Financial Bankshares had a return on equity of 13.43% and a net margin of 28.76%. Equities analysts forecast that First Financial Bankshares will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bankshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. First Financial Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on FFIN shares. Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $34.50 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Stephens lifted their price target on First Financial Bankshares from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on First Financial Bankshares from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO F Scott Dueser sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.73, for a total value of $1,018,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 471,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,183,992.92. This represents a 5.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael B. Denny sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.12, for a total value of $287,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 101,085 shares in the company, valued at $4,156,615.20. This trade represents a 6.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 32.2% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,369 shares of the bank’s stock worth $88,000 after buying an additional 577 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in First Financial Bankshares during the second quarter valued at approximately $83,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in First Financial Bankshares during the second quarter worth approximately $97,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of First Financial Bankshares during the 2nd quarter worth $118,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE raised its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 50.9% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,026 shares of the bank’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,696 shares during the period. 69.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First Financial Bankshares

First Financial Bankshares, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides commercial banking products and services in Texas. The company offers checking, savings and time deposits; automated teller machines, drive-in, and night deposit services; safe deposit facilities, remote deposit capture, internet banking, mobile banking, payroll cards, funds transfer, and performing other customary commercial banking services; securities brokerage services; and trust and wealth management services, including wealth management, estates administration, oil and gas management, testamentary trusts, revocable and irrevocable trusts, and agency accounts.