Barclays PLC Acquires 14,349 Shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) by 62.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,457 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 14,349 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.32% of First Financial worth $1,643,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial by 2.0% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 102,269 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,772,000 after purchasing an additional 2,046 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in First Financial by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 18,726 shares of the bank’s stock worth $691,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in First Financial by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 7,043 shares of the bank’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of First Financial by 19.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 190,126 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,012,000 after buying an additional 30,986 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of First Financial by 0.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 729,676 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,910,000 after buying an additional 4,662 shares during the period. 72.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Financial Trading Down 2.8 %

THFF opened at $43.45 on Friday. First Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $34.58 and a twelve month high of $51.87. The company has a fifty day moving average of $47.90 and a 200-day moving average of $44.29. The stock has a market cap of $513.06 million, a PE ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.17). First Financial had a net margin of 14.86% and a return on equity of 8.10%. The firm had revenue of $82.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.95 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Financial Co. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.70%. This is a boost from First Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. First Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Raymond James raised First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th.

First Financial Profile

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.