Millennium Management LLC Increases Position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 16.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 567,572 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 82,025 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $15,256,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FFBC. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Quarry LP increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,502 shares of the bank’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 221.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,717 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,873 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter worth $76,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 807.3% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,976 shares of the bank’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 2,648 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FFBC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $27.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, January 24th.

Insider Transactions at First Financial Bancorp.

In related news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total value of $189,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,141 shares in the company, valued at $277,633.72. This trade represents a 40.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

Shares of FFBC stock opened at $24.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $20.59 and a 1-year high of $31.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $23.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.39.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The company had revenue of $201.59 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $214.80 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.98%. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is currently 39.83%.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.