First Financial Bancorp. (FFBC) Holding Strong: What’s pushing it?

The price of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) shares last traded on Wall Street rose 1.72% to $21.93.

Based on available information, 6 analysts follow First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC). The consensus rating among analysts is ‘Hold’. As we calculate the median target price by taking the range between a high of $28.00 and a low of $25.00, we find $26.00. Given the previous closing price of $21.56, this indicates a potential upside of 20.59 percent. FFBC stock price is now -10.73% away from the 50-day moving average and -5.06% away from the 200-day moving average. The market capitalization of the company currently stands at $2.08B.

Among analysts, 6 rate the stock a hold while 0 rate it a buy. Brokers who have rated the stock have averaged $26.20 as their price target over the next twelve months.

With the price target enhanced from $22 to $23, Piper Sandler Downgraded its rating from Overweight to Neutral for First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ: FFBC). On February 01, 2021, Piper Sandler Upgraded its previous ‘Neutral’ rating to ‘Overweight’ on the stock increasing its target price from $19 to quote $22, while ‘Piper Jaffray’ rates the stock as ‘Overweight’.

In other news, DAVIS CLAUDE E, Chair of the Board sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock on Feb 13. The stock was sold for $638,675 at an average price of $25.55. Upon completion of the transaction, the Chair of the Board now directly owns 75,906 shares in the company, valued at $1.66 million. An SEC document containing details of the transaction can be found on the SEC’s website. On Nov 02, Chair of the Board DAVIS CLAUDE E sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock. A total of $641,300 was realized by selling the stock at an average price of $25.65. This leaves the insider owning 104,906 shares of the company worth $2.3 million. Insiders disposed of 65,246 shares of company stock worth roughly $1.43 million over the past 1 year. A total of 0.50% of the company’s stock is owned by insiders.

There have been several recent changes in the stakes of large investors in FFBC stock. A new stake in First Financial Bancorp. shares was purchased by FISHER ASSET MANAGEMENT, LLC during the first quarter worth $14,100,000. STATE OF NEW JERSEY COMMON PENSION FUND D invested $1,968,000 in shares of FFBC during the first quarter. In the first quarter, OCCUDO QUANTITATIVE STRATEGIES LP acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. valued at approximately $1,219,000. AMALGAMATED FINANCIAL CORP. acquired a new stake in FFBC for approximately $919,000. HRT FINANCIAL LP purchased a new stake in FFBC valued at around $879,000 in the second quarter. In total, there are 318 active investors with 75.60% ownership of the company’s stock.

A candlestick chart of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ: FFBC) showed a price of $22.39 on Tuesday morning. During the past 12 months, First Financial Bancorp. has had a low of $18.75 and a high of $26.72. The fifty day moving average price for FFBC is $24.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price translates $23.10 for the stock.

The latest earnings results from First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ: FFBC) was released for Dec, 2022. According to the Banks – Regional Company, earnings per share came in at $0.73, beating analysts’ expectations of $0.69 by 0.04. This compares to $0.51 EPS in the same period last year. The net profit margin was 37.20% and return on equity was 10.60% for FFBC. The company reported revenue of $189.92 million for the quarter, compared to $117.87 million a year earlier. Comparatively to last year’s same quarter, the company’s quarterly revenue rose 61.12 percent. For the current quarter, analysts expect FFBC to generate $205.32M in revenue.

Moreover, the firm recently paid out its quarterly dividend on 03/15/2023. Investors who held shares on 03/01/2023 were paid a $0.23 dividend. On an annualized basis, this represents a $0.92 dividend and a 4.20% percent yield. There was an ex-dividend date of 02/28/2023 for this dividend. In terms of dividend payout ratio, FFBC is presently at 39.50%.

First Financial Bancorp.(FFBC) 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 accepts various deposit products, such as interest-bearing and noninterest-bearing accounts, time deposits, and cash management services for commercial customers. It also provides real estate loans secured by residential property, such as one to four family residential housing units or commercial property comprising owner-occupied and/or investor income producing real estate consisting of apartments, shopping centers, or office buildings; commercial and industrial loans for various purposes, including inventory, receivables, and equipment; consumer loans comprising new and used vehicle loans, second mortgages on residential real estate, and unsecured loans; and home equity lines of credit. In addition, the company offers commercial financing to the insurance industry, registered investment advisors, certified public accountants, indirect auto finance companies, and restaurant franchisees. Further, it provides a range of trust and wealth management services; and lease and equipment financing services. As of December 31, 2021, the company operated 139 full service banking centers, 29 of which are leased facilities. It operates 62 banking centers in Ohio, three banking centers in Illinois, 62 banking centers in Indiana, and 12 banking centers in Kentucky. First Financial Bancorp. was founded in 1863 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.