Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Grows Holdings in First Financial Bankshares, Inc. $FFIN

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its stake in First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) by 84.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,972 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 24,247 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in First Financial Bankshares were worth $1,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in First Financial Bankshares by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,452,051 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $124,218,000 after acquiring an additional 61,599 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,901,239 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $104,213,000 after purchasing an additional 161,991 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 36.0% in the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,465,774 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $88,571,000 after purchasing an additional 652,575 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 125.7% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,085,517 shares of the bank’s stock worth $38,993,000 after purchasing an additional 604,648 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in First Financial Bankshares by 1.1% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,070,755 shares of the bank’s stock worth $38,526,000 after purchasing an additional 11,188 shares in the last quarter. 69.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Michelle S. Hickox bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $31.15 per share, for a total transaction of $62,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 24,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $761,960.15. This represents a 8.90% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Sally Pope Davis purchased 1,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $30.73 per share, with a total value of $52,241.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,218.83. The trade was a 32.25% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders acquired 4,353 shares of company stock worth $134,888 over the last quarter. 4.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ FFIN opened at $31.14 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $33.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.89. First Financial Bankshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.19 and a 52-week high of $44.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.43 and a beta of 0.88.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $161.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.21 million. First Financial Bankshares had a return on equity of 14.16% and a net margin of 29.81%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that First Financial Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bankshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. First Financial Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on FFIN shares. Hovde Group raised First Financial Bankshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $39.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on First Financial Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on First Financial Bankshares from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Financial Bankshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.00.

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.