First Financial Bankshares, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.18 (NASDAQ:FFIN)

First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) announced a quarterly dividend on Monday, February 3rd,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of 0.18 per share by the bank on Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th.

First Financial Bankshares has increased its dividend payment by an average of 7.5% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. First Financial Bankshares has a payout ratio of 39.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect First Financial Bankshares to earn $1.88 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.72 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.3%.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Performance

First Financial Bankshares stock opened at $36.94 on Tuesday. First Financial Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $27.62 and a fifty-two week high of $44.66. The stock has a market cap of $5.28 billion, a PE ratio of 23.68 and a beta of 0.83. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $38.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.53.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.03. First Financial Bankshares had a net margin of 29.69% and a return on equity of 14.24%. As a group, analysts predict that First Financial Bankshares will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on FFIN shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Hovde Group increased their price target on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $34.50 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael B. Denny sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.12, for a total transaction of $287,840.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 101,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,156,615.20. This trade represents a 6.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO F Scott Dueser sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.73, for a total transaction of $1,018,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 471,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,183,992.92. This trade represents a 5.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 4.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First Financial Bankshares Company Profile

First Financial Bankshares, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides commercial banking products and services in Texas. The company offers checking, savings and time deposits; automated teller machines, drive-in, and night deposit services; safe deposit facilities, remote deposit capture, internet banking, mobile banking, payroll cards, funds transfer, and performing other customary commercial banking services; securities brokerage services; and trust and wealth management services, including wealth management, estates administration, oil and gas management, testamentary trusts, revocable and irrevocable trusts, and agency accounts.