Comerica Bank Decreases Stock Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Comerica Bank trimmed its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 48,545 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 528 shares during the period. Comerica Bank’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $1,305,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in FFBC. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 68.9% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,502 shares of the bank’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 221.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,717 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 1,873 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth $76,000. 77.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total transaction of $189,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $277,633.72. The trade was a 40.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of FFBC stock opened at $24.07 on Monday. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $20.59 and a 12 month high of $31.18. The stock has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.03 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $23.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.45.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The firm had revenue of $201.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $214.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.83%.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.