First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.45

First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, September 19th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of 0.45 per share by the bank on Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 1st.

First Financial has raised its dividend payment by an average of 13.7% annually over the last three years. First Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 35.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect First Financial to earn $5.10 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 35.3%.

First Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:THFF opened at $46.46 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $43.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.12. The company has a market cap of $548.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.91 and a beta of 0.47. First Financial has a twelve month low of $31.74 and a twelve month high of $47.00.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.96. First Financial had a return on equity of 9.95% and a net margin of 18.22%. The company had revenue of $70.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $51.95 million. Research analysts predict that First Financial will post 4.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of First Financial from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

About First Financial

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.