First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Stock Gets Price Target Increase from Truist Financial

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) had its target price boosted by research analysts at Truist Financial from $37.00 to $38.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the bank’s stock. Truist Financial‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 14.54% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on FFBC. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $37.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Financial Bancorp. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.33.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

First Financial Bancorp. stock traded up $0.82 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $33.17. 242,953 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 933,716. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a PE ratio of 11.64 and a beta of 0.95. First Financial Bancorp. has a fifty-two week low of $23.06 and a fifty-two week high of $36.24.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The bank reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $273.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $270.97 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 11.44% and a net margin of 20.80%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Archie M. Brown sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.93, for a total value of $164,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 238,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,862,300.94. The trade was a 2.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas O’Brien sold 16,088 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.77, for a total transaction of $527,203.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 30,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $995,945.84. The trade was a 34.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Financial Bancorp.

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FFBC. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 2,958.7% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 10,889 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 10,533 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Capstone Capital Management Ltd purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $240,000. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $606,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

First Financial Bancorp. is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. Through its principal subsidiary, First Financial Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to businesses, individuals and organizations.

First Financial Bank offers commercial and consumer lending, deposit accounts, treasury management, cash management and other traditional banking products. Its services also include wealth management, investment services and mortgage-related solutions, helping customers manage borrowing, deposits, payments and longer-term financial needs.

The company serves communities primarily in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky through a network of banking offices and digital banking channels.