CenterBook Partners LP Purchases 25,257 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC

CenterBook Partners LP grew its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 42.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 84,821 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,257 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $2,122,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of FFBC. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 55.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 97,727 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,441,000 after purchasing an additional 34,676 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 56,205 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 2,458 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 589,799 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,733,000 after purchasing an additional 22,227 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 571.4% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 7,412 shares of the bank’s stock worth $185,000 after purchasing an additional 6,308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 318,298 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,951,000 after purchasing an additional 17,911 shares during the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $31.38 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $29.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.10. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $22.93 and a 1-year high of $31.74. The company has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.09 and a beta of 0.93.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on FFBC shares. Wall Street Zen raised First Financial Bancorp. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Stephens started coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $33.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial raised their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $34.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, CFO James M. Anderson sold 4,263 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $127,890.00. Following the completion of 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Claude E. Davis sold 26,123 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.45, for a total value of $795,445.35. Following the sale, the insider owned 30,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,126 shares of company stock worth $1,255,501. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. 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.