Cibc World Markets Corp Purchases New Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 8,837 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $238,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 26.1% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 101,922 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,740,000 after buying an additional 21,069 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 52.6% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 44,045 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,184,000 after acquiring an additional 15,183 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 32.1% in the 4th quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 20,804 shares of the bank’s stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 5,053 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 12,269 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 187,743 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,047,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock opened at $25.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.57 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $20.59 and a twelve month high of $31.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.88.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. Equities research analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.79%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial Bancorp.

In other news, insider James R. Shank sold 7,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.92, for a total transaction of $189,392.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $277,633.72. The trade was a 40.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on FFBC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

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.