First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Insider Sells $122,080.68 in Stock

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) insider Richard S. Dennen sold 4,068 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.01, for a total transaction of $122,080.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 70,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,120,266.52. This trade represents a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $29.71 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $26.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.79. The stock has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.81 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. First Financial Bancorp. has a 12 month low of $20.05 and a 12 month high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $302.82 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $214.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.55% and a return on equity of 10.32%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.38%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Financial Bancorp.

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 338,711 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,526,000 after buying an additional 164,105 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 162.4% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 242,187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,381,000 after acquiring an additional 149,896 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 140.1% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 190,742 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,812,000 after purchasing an additional 111,309 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,792,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 41.1% during the second quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 302,700 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,726,000 after purchasing an additional 88,100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Company 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.