First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC Shares Bought by Denali Advisors LLC

Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 2.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 262,525 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,199 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $6,369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 1.0% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 749,100 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,713,000 after buying an additional 7,641 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 3.4% during the first quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 700,551 shares of the bank’s stock worth $17,500,000 after buying an additional 23,268 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the first quarter worth about $16,615,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 3.9% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 589,799 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,733,000 after buying an additional 22,227 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 2.6% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 525,209 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,120,000 after purchasing an additional 13,341 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

Shares of FFBC stock opened at $24.35 on Wednesday. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $21.10 and a 12 month high of $31.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 0.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $25.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.59.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 15th. The bank reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $179.99 million for the quarter. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 19.41% and a return on equity of 10.57%. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on FFBC shares. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 20th. Raymond James Financial set a $30.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $28.00 target price (up from $27.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.83.

Insider Activity

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, Director Thomas Murray Obrien sold 7,383 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.54, for a total value of $195,944.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 46,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,233,579.20. This represents a 13.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Archie M. Brown sold 12,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.79, for a total transaction of $309,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 240,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,971,687.89. This trade represents a 4.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.