Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Sells 403 Shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC decreased its stake in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,739 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 403 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in First Financial were worth $635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of First Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in First Financial by 420.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the bank’s stock worth $172,000 after purchasing an additional 3,165 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC bought a new stake in First Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $230,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $279,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of First Financial during the third quarter valued at $279,000. 72.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:THFF opened at $47.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $47.71 and a 200 day moving average of $44.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market capitalization of $561.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 0.51. First Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $34.58 and a 52 week high of $51.87.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by ($0.17). First Financial had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 14.86%. The company had revenue of $82.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $57.95 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that First Financial Co. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.29%. This is a positive change from First Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. First Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Raymond James raised shares of First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th.

First Financial Profile

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.