Inspire Advisors LLC Invests $216,000 in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Inspire Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 8,556 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,939,804 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $259,820,000 after purchasing an additional 91,126 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 0.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,732,162 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $149,587,000 after buying an additional 60,612 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 901,908 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $22,755,000 after buying an additional 36,679 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. boosted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 625,822 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,031,000 after buying an additional 39,870 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 338,711 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,526,000 after acquiring an additional 164,105 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Down 1.5 %

First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $26.04 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.50 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52-week low of $17.23 and a 52-week high of $28.25. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $25.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.75.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 19.67%. The business had revenue of $314.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $203.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.58 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, September 2nd were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This is an increase from First Financial Bancorp.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is presently 38.71%.

Insider Activity at First Financial Bancorp.

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider Claude E. Davis sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total value of $771,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 53,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,425,121.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FFBC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on First Financial Bancorp. from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.