Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 19.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,883 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,612 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $520,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,106,449 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,686,000 after purchasing an additional 48,501 shares in the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 573,241 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,236,000 after purchasing an additional 35,764 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 209,243 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,101,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 159,159 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,780,000 after buying an additional 8,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 64.7% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 156,000 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,705,000 after buying an additional 61,300 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on FFBC. Piper Sandler began coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, February 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $26.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $24.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Tuesday, April 9th.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $23.08 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.15 and a beta of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.72. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $17.23 and a 1-year high of $24.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.59. The business had revenue of $287.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $201.79 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 20.74%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. Analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.34 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, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

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.