Royce & Associates LP Has $9.13 Million Position in First Financial Bankshares, Inc. $FFIN

Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIN) by 93.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 305,535 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 147,974 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in First Financial Bankshares were worth $9,126,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of First Financial Bankshares by 3,042,660.3% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 21,512,315 shares of the bank’s stock worth $642,573,000 after buying an additional 21,511,608 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 31.8% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,290,749 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $43,434,000 after purchasing an additional 311,628 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 3.9% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,144,070 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,498,000 after purchasing an additional 43,042 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 72.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 710,699 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,229,000 after purchasing an additional 299,079 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in First Financial Bankshares by 314.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 490,284 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,640,000 after purchasing an additional 371,847 shares during the last quarter. 69.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial Bankshares

In other news, CFO Michelle S. Hickox bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $29.50 per share, with a total value of $29,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 11,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $349,899.50. This represents a 9.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Johnny Trotter bought 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $30.02 per share, with a total value of $120,080.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 955,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,682,428.88. The trade was a 0.42% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 10,964 shares of company stock valued at $326,287 over the last three months. 3.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Financial Bankshares Stock Performance

Shares of FFIN opened at $32.70 on Friday. First Financial Bankshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.11 and a 52-week high of $38.74. The firm has a market cap of $4.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.77 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s fifty day moving average is $31.22 and its 200-day moving average is $31.47.

First Financial Bankshares (NASDAQ:FFIN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.03. First Financial Bankshares had a net margin of 31.00% and a return on equity of 14.20%. The firm had revenue of $166.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $166.78 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that First Financial Bankshares, Inc. will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bankshares Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This is a boost from First Financial Bankshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. First Financial Bankshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of First Financial Bankshares in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of First Financial Bankshares from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.33.

First Financial Bankshares Company Profile

First Financial Bankshares, Inc is a regional bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its primary subsidiary, First Financial Bank, the company offers a full suite of banking products and services to individual, small business and commercial clients. With roots dating back to 1863, First Financial has cultivated a strong community banking heritage, combining personalized service with modern financial solutions.

The company’s core business activities include commercial and consumer lending, deposit products, treasury management, mortgage origination and servicing, and wealth management.