Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $821,000 Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,571 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 467 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $821,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,993 shares of the bank’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 566 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 2.0% during the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 28,656 shares of the bank’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 6,189 shares of the bank’s stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,028 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 45,389 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $890,000 after purchasing an additional 1,622 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 42,416 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,007,000 after purchasing an additional 1,797 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on FFBC shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $26.00 price objective on the stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $23.55 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1 year low of $17.23 and a 1 year high of $24.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.50 and a beta of 1.04.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.59. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 20.74%. The company had revenue of $287.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $201.79 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.91%. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

First Financial Bancorp. Profile

First Financial Bancorp. operates as the bank holding company for First Financial Bank that provides commercial banking and related services to individuals and businesses in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois. The company offers checking, savings, and money-market accounts; and accepts various deposit products, such as interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing accounts, time deposits, and cash management services for commercial customers.