Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stake in First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,309,205 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,116 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $32,756,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in FFBC. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. MAI Capital Management boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 530.6% during the 3rd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,545 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 38.7% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,743 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO James M. Anderson sold 4,263 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $127,890.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 118,537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,556,110. This trade represents a 3.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Claude E. Davis sold 26,123 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.45, for a total transaction of $795,445.35. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 30,410 shares in the company, valued at $925,984.50. The trade was a 46.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 30,706 shares of company stock worth $932,372 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FFBC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $34.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Monday, April 27th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, March 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.00.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $29.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 10.48 and a beta of 0.94. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52-week low of $22.93 and a 52-week high of $31.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company’s 50 day moving average is $28.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.27.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.34%.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.