Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Takes $1.11 Million Position in First Financial Bankshares, Inc. $FFIN

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 37,800 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,113,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of FFIN. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in First Financial Bankshares by 3,042,660.3% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 21,512,315 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $642,573,000 after purchasing an additional 21,511,608 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,140,759 shares of the bank’s stock worth $184,551,000 after buying an additional 87,988 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,715,913 shares of the bank’s stock worth $81,129,000 after buying an additional 165,801 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial Bankshares during the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,227,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 4,145.8% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,709,631 shares of the bank’s stock worth $51,067,000 after buying an additional 1,669,365 shares during the period. 69.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Performance

FFIN opened at $34.88 on Friday. First Financial Bankshares, Inc. has a one year low of $28.11 and a one year high of $38.74. The company has a market cap of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $32.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.89.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $166.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $166.78 million. First Financial Bankshares had a return on equity of 14.20% and a net margin of 31.00%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that First Financial Bankshares, Inc. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bankshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. This is a boost from First Financial Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. First Financial Bankshares’s payout ratio is presently 47.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial Bankshares

In related news, Director Murray Hamilton Edwards bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $33.18 per share, for a total transaction of $33,180.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 44,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,480,956.12. This represents a 2.29% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 3.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FFIN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Benchmark began coverage on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.75.

About First Financial Bankshares

First Financial Bankshares, Inc is a regional bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its primary subsidiary, First Financial Bank, the company offers a full suite of banking products and services to individual, small business and commercial clients. With roots dating back to 1863, First Financial has cultivated a strong community banking heritage, combining personalized service with modern financial solutions.

The company’s core business activities include commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, treasury management, mortgage origination and servicing, and wealth management.