Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 22,573 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,304,922 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,573 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 1.37% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $35,076,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 221.9% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,717 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 1,873 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 849,678 shares of the bank’s stock worth $22,839,000 after purchasing an additional 126,996 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 37,505 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,008,000 after buying an additional 1,537 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. in the 4th quarter worth $228,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 511,868 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,759,000 after purchasing an additional 20,636 shares during the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $24.85 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $20.59 and a 12 month high of $31.18. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $27.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.93. The company has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.99.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 10.52%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.00%.

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.