First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Position Trimmed by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund decreased its position in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,173 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,078 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned about 0.05% of First Financial Bancorp. worth $1,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in FFBC. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $228,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 511,868 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,759,000 after buying an additional 20,636 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $76,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 308,749 shares of the bank’s stock worth $8,299,000 after buying an additional 15,037 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

FFBC opened at $27.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a PE ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1 year low of $20.59 and a 1 year high of $31.18. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.94.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 18.67%. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FFBC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, 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 research report 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.