Picton Mahoney Asset Management Decreases Stock Position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Picton Mahoney Asset Management lessened its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 27.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,196 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 5,608 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $380,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC boosted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 24.4% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 432 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 12,269 shares of the bank’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 43.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,522 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 9,879 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 11,585 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 822 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $24.49 on Thursday. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12-month low of $21.10 and a 12-month high of $31.18. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $24.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.34 billion, a PE ratio of 9.80 and a beta of 0.96.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $226.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $219.95 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 19.41% and a return on equity of 10.57%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.08%. This is a boost from First Financial Bancorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is presently 38.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FFBC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $27.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $28.00 price objective (up from $27.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded First Financial Bancorp. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.00.

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.