First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Hits Estimates

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.52, Zacks reports. First Financial Bankshares had a net margin of 31.03% and a return on equity of 14.00%.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ FFIN traded up $0.70 during trading on Thursday, hitting $31.59. The company had a trading volume of 802,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 823,275. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.89 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.97. First Financial Bankshares has a fifty-two week low of $28.11 and a fifty-two week high of $36.52.

First Financial Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 14th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 14th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. First Financial Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FFIN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Hovde Group initiated coverage on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a report on Friday, September 11th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $39.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Seaport Research Partners raised shares of First Financial Bankshares to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Financial Bankshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.60.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Ronald David Butler II sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total transaction of $524,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 152,223 shares in the company, valued at $5,320,193.85. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael Denny purchased 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $34.66 per share, for a total transaction of $103,980.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,500 shares in the company, valued at $225,290. This represents a 85.71% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About First Financial Bankshares

First Financial Bankshares, Inc is a Texas-based financial holding company headquartered in Abilene. Through its principal subsidiary, First Financial Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, agricultural customers and public-sector organizations.

Its offerings include checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage lending, treasury and cash-management services, online and mobile banking, and other deposit products. The company also provides trust, wealth-management and investment-related services through affiliated operations.

First Financial Bankshares traces its history to 1890 and serves communities across Texas through a network of banking locations.