First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Price Target Raised to $34.00 at Hovde Group

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) had its price target hoisted by Hovde Group from $32.00 to $34.00 in a research note published on Friday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on FFBC. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Financial Bancorp. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday. Truist Financial increased their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $28.00 price target (down from $30.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered First Financial Bancorp. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.33.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Down 0.2%

FFBC stock opened at $28.74 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.34. The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $21.10 and a twelve month high of $29.21.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $251.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $249.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.30% and a return on equity of 10.77%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.71 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Archie M. Brown sold 11,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.80, for a total value of $308,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 229,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,147,678.80. This trade represents a 4.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 55.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 97,727 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,441,000 after buying an additional 34,676 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 56,205 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,404,000 after acquiring an additional 2,458 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 589,799 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,733,000 after acquiring an additional 22,227 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 571.4% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 7,412 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $185,000 after acquiring an additional 6,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 318,298 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,951,000 after acquiring an additional 17,911 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting First Financial Bancorp. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Hovde Group raised its price target from $32 to $34 and assigned an “outperform” rating, signaling stronger analyst conviction and ~18% upside to the new target from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target from $31 to $32 and maintained a “market perform” rating, adding incremental analyst support for the shares. KBW raises price target to $32 (TickerReport)
• Positive Sentiment: Company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 (annualized yield ~3.5%), reinforcing cash return to shareholders and supporting income-oriented investor interest.
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results: FFBC reported record EPS ($0.80), beating estimates and showing margin strength; management highlighted synergies from recent acquisitions. First Financial Posts Record Earnings, Eyes Synergies (TipRanks)
• Positive Sentiment: Management set a 2026 organic loan-growth target of 6%–8% as integration of acquisitions advances — a clear growth objective that supports revenue and net-interest-income outlook. First Financial outlines 6%–8% loan growth target (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and highlights are available for deeper color on guidance, expense synergies and loan pipeline; useful for investors modeling forward quarters. Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage pieces and screens (e.g., dividend-focused write-ups) are spotlighting FFBC as an income candidate, which may attract longer-term dividend investors but has mixed short-term impact. Dividend-focused coverage (Zacks)
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed Q4 estimates, which could temper near-term momentum despite the EPS beat — investors may be watching upcoming quarters for confirmation of revenue and loan-growth targets. FFBC Misses Q4 Revenue Estimates (Yahoo Finance)

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.