First Financial Co. (THFF) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.51 on April 15th

First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, March 18th, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of 0.51 per share by the bank on Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st.

First Financial has raised its dividend by an average of 20.6% annually over the last three years. First Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 35.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect First Financial to earn $5.94 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.04 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 34.3%.

First Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ THFF opened at $49.09 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $581.86 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $50.04 and a 200 day moving average of $47.33. First Financial has a one year low of $34.58 and a one year high of $53.60.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.08. First Financial had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 8.77%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Mark Allen Franklin bought 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $52.53 per share, for a total transaction of $57,783.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,845 shares in the company, valued at $517,157.85. The trade was a 12.58 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director James O. Mcdonald bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $48.99 per share, with a total value of $48,990.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 9,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $463,543.38. This represents a 11.82 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 2,195 shares of company stock worth $111,625 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.69% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on THFF. Janney Montgomery Scott raised First Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Raymond James raised First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $55.00 price target (up previously from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

First Financial Company 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.