JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reduces Position in First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,710,226 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 79,902 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 2.75% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $68,433,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of FFBC. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 3rd quarter valued at $257,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 102,243 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,603,000 after purchasing an additional 3,235 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth $226,000. Numerai GP LLC acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth $265,000. Finally, Mariner LLC grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 56,009 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares during the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Hovde Group upped their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Financial Bancorp. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $30.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider Gregory A. Harris sold 1,821 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total value of $53,592.03. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 42,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,248,744.33. This represents a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Karen B. Woods sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.28, for a total transaction of $302,800.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 63,954 shares in the company, valued at $1,936,527.12. The trade was a 13.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 32,141 shares of company stock worth $969,429. 1.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $26.72 on Friday. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $21.10 and a 52 week high of $31.38. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $28.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.27. The company has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $251.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $249.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 20.30%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.71 EPS. Research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.59%.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

First Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ: FFBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the parent of First Financial Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking services through a network of more than 100 full-service banking centers and mortgage offices across Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Its core mission centers on delivering personalized relationship banking to businesses, individuals and public sector clients.

First Financial Bank’s product portfolio includes deposit solutions such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside a range of lending offerings that cover commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, home mortgages and home equity lines of credit.