US Bancorp DE Has $5.28 Million Stake in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

US Bancorp DE lowered its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 196,514 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,007 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $5,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the third quarter valued at $30,000. ORG Partners LLC bought a new position in First Financial Bancorp. in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. during the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 82.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,150 shares of the bank’s stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,333 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $25.94 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $27.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $20.59 and a 52 week high of $31.18.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. On average, equities analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

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.