Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Sells 6,350 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lowered its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,832 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 6,350 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FFBC. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 1st quarter valued at about $16,615,000. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. in the first quarter worth approximately $5,714,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 212.2% during the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 154,312 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,855,000 after acquiring an additional 104,884 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the second quarter worth approximately $1,619,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 27.3% during the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 302,830 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,565,000 after acquiring an additional 64,882 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $24.89 on Friday. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $21.10 and a 12 month high of $30.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.22 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.77.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The bank reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.64% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The company had revenue of $234.01 million during the quarter. On average, equities analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FFBC. Hovde Group initiated coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, October 6th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Zacks Research downgraded shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $28.00 price objective (down from $30.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Truist Financial raised their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.50.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

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.