First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Insider Gregory Harris Sells 1,821 Shares of Stock

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) insider Gregory Harris sold 1,821 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total transaction of $53,592.03. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,248,744.33. This trade represents a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 1.0%

First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $29.46 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $26.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of 11.08 and a beta of 1.00. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $21.10 and a 52 week high of $29.94.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $251.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 prior year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on FFBC. Hovde Group raised their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research downgraded First Financial Bancorp. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $28.00 target price (down from $30.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Finally, 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.50.

Key Headlines Impacting First Financial Bancorp.

Here are the key news stories impacting First Financial Bancorp. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company update: strong 2025 financial performance. Management published a fourth‑quarter 2025 investor presentation highlighting solid results and momentum that reinforce the bank’s recent earnings beat and guidance — a catalyst for confidence among investors. Investor Presentation
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised price targets. Several firms lifted targets (Truist to $30; other outlets report raises to $32 and $34), which supports upside expectations and likely contributed to buying interest. Truist Note Price Target $32 Price Target $34
• Neutral Sentiment: Community giving — modest PR benefit. First Financial reported donating more than $124,000 to Bloomington causes in 2025, which supports local reputation but has negligible financial impact. Community Donations
• Neutral Sentiment: Short interest shows no meaningful pressure (data appears negligible/garbled). Reported short interest reads as zero shares with a 0.0 days ratio — effectively no short-squeeze risk noted, but the entry looks like a data anomaly and is unlikely to move the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider sale disclosed. Director/insider Gregory A. Harris sold 1,821 shares at about $29.43 (SEC Form 4 filed). The sale is relatively small in dollar terms and follows strong public results, but some investors view insider selling as a mild negative signal. SEC Form 4

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Denali Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 310,200 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,761,000 after purchasing an additional 23,700 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth about $936,000. Western Standard LLC bought a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth about $1,876,000. Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 48.3% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 14,210 shares of the bank’s stock worth $356,000 after buying an additional 4,625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Souders Financial Advisors raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Souders Financial Advisors now owns 75,485 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,889,000 after acquiring an additional 3,483 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

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.