Sterling Capital Management LLC Purchases 327 Shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,979 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in First Financial were worth $322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Kennedy Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,855,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in First Financial by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 230,332 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,100,000 after purchasing an additional 22,287 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Financial by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 235,412 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,874,000 after purchasing an additional 19,867 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of First Financial in the fourth quarter worth $707,000. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial by 62.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,457 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,643,000 after purchasing an additional 14,349 shares during the last quarter. 72.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

THFF has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective (up from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of First Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th.

First Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ THFF opened at $44.31 on Friday. 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 $34.61 and a 12-month high of $53.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $525.21 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.08 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $48.54 and a 200 day moving average of $47.43.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.08. First Financial had a return on equity of 8.77% and a net margin of 15.37%. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Financial Co. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. First Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 51.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Mark Allen Franklin bought 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $52.53 per share, with a total value of $57,783.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 9,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $517,157.85. This represents a 12.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director James O. Mcdonald bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $48.99 per share, with a total value of $48,990.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 9,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $463,543.38. This represents a 11.82 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 2,195 shares of company stock worth $111,625. Company insiders own 5.01% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Company 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.