First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Short Interest Update

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 3,675,017 shares, a growth of 57.2% from the January 15th total of 2,337,746 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,551,215 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days. Approximately 3.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Approximately 3.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,551,215 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FFBC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped 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 Friday, January 30th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $28.00 price objective (down previously from $30.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Hovde Group boosted their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, First Financial Bancorp. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.50.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

FFBC traded up $0.12 on Friday, reaching $30.31. The company had a trading volume of 606,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,076,944. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a PE ratio of 11.39 and a beta of 1.00. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1 year low of $21.10 and a 1 year high of $31.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.02. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 10.77%. The business had revenue of $251.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $249.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.20, for a total transaction of $604,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 61,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,051.20. This represents a 24.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gregory A. Harris sold 1,821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total value of $53,592.03. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 42,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,248,744.33. The trade was a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 44,821 shares of company stock valued at $1,273,992 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 26,260 shares of the bank’s stock worth $657,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 3,309 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 21.3% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,670 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 19.4% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,308 shares of the bank’s stock worth $715,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

First Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ: FFBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the parent of First Financial Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking services through a network of more than 100 full-service banking centers and mortgage offices across Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Its core mission centers on delivering personalized relationship banking to businesses, individuals and public sector clients.

First Financial Bank’s product portfolio includes deposit solutions such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside a range of lending offerings that cover commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, home mortgages and home equity lines of credit.