Empowered Funds LLC Boosts Stake in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 293,712 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,922 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.31% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $7,410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FFBC. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 338,711 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,526,000 after acquiring an additional 164,105 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 162.4% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 242,187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,381,000 after purchasing an additional 149,896 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 41.1% in the second quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 302,700 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,726,000 after buying an additional 88,100 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 176.3% in the second quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 127,326 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,820,000 after buying an additional 81,245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,652,000. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on FFBC shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th.

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In other news, insider Scott T. Crawley sold 3,000 shares of First Financial Bancorp. 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 transaction, the insider now owns 19,279 shares in the company, valued at approximately $565,067.49. This trade represents a 13.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 932 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $27,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 74,720 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,241,600. This trade represents a 1.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 36,632 shares of company stock valued at $984,748. Insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $29.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.54 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a one year low of $19.92 and a one year high of $30.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.48.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $302.82 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 in the prior year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.38%.

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.