First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,640,000 shares, an increase of 10.1% from the November 30th total of 1,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 431,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.8 days. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.
First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance
Shares of NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $26.88 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $28.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.87. The company has a market cap of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 1.01. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $20.59 and a 12 month high of $31.18.
First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $302.82 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $214.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.32% and a net margin of 18.55%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.
First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement
Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial Bancorp.
In other news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $27,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,241,600. This represents a 1.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Scott T. Crawley sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.31, for a total value of $87,930.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $565,067.49. This represents a 13.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,700 shares of company stock valued at $335,429 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2,976.9% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. in the second quarter worth $96,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in First Financial Bancorp. in the third quarter worth $149,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens upgraded First Financial Bancorp. from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on FFBC
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.
Recommended Stories
- Five stocks we like better than First Financial Bancorp.
- Comparing and Trading High PE Ratio Stocks
- Work and Play: Investing in the Rise of Bleisure Travel
- Learn Technical Analysis Skills to Master the Stock Market
- Top Dividend Stocks to Buy Now as Bond Yields Could Lower
- Low PE Growth Stocks: Unlocking Investment Opportunities
- SAP: AI Tailwinds Accelerating Enterprise Cloud Business
Receive News & Ratings for First Financial Bancorp. Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for First Financial Bancorp. and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.