Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. Sells 1,231 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,825,811 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,231 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. owned 1.91% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $49,078,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 86,287 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,320,000 after purchasing an additional 6,629 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 713.5% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 265,843 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,149,000 after buying an additional 233,163 shares during the period. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 79.8% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 43,918 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,181,000 after buying an additional 19,495 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 57,189 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,537,000 after acquiring an additional 3,131 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 38.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,186,286 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,887,000 after acquiring an additional 328,788 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total value of $189,392.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $277,633.72. This represents a 40.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $23.83 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1 year low of $20.59 and a 1 year high of $31.18. The firm has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.57.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.00%.

First Financial Bancorp. Company 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.