Insider Selling: First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Insider Sells $53,592.03 in Stock

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) insider Gregory Harris sold 1,821 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total transaction of $53,592.03. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,248,744.33. This trade represents a 4.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ FFBC opened at $30.06 on Friday. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52 week low of $21.10 and a 52 week high of $30.56. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $2.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 1.00.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $251.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $249.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 20.30%.During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.71 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is presently 37.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FFBC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Zacks Research cut shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Hovde Group boosted their price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $28.00 price target (down previously from $30.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.50.

Key Headlines Impacting First Financial Bancorp.

Here are the key news stories impacting First Financial Bancorp. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price‑target raises — several firms have lifted targets (examples include Truist and Hovde), supporting upside expectations and likely contributing to buying momentum. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results and investor presentation showed beats and intact guidance — management’s January quarter beat on EPS/revenue and the Q4 investor presentation reinforced steady core performance, which underpins analyst support. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and yield remain supportive — the company recently declared a quarterly dividend (annualized ~$1.00, ~3.3% yield), a positive for income‑oriented holders. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Local community giving and PR items — modest donations reported (~$124k) help reputation but have negligible direct financial impact. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer comparisons and sector notes — coverage comparing regional peers provides context for valuation but is unlikely to move the stock on its own. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sale by Richard S. Dennen — Dennen sold 20,000 shares (~$604k at ~$30.20), trimming his stake by ~24%; sizable insider sales can create near‑term concern about insider conviction. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Additional insider selling (Gregory A. Harris) — a smaller sale (1,821 shares) was also filed, adding to the narrative of insiders trimming positions. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Layoffs at newly acquired Seville operations center — the bank will cut 56 roles at a recent acquisition site; while it may lower costs over time, the move brings integration and execution risk in the near term. Read More.

Institutional Trading of First Financial Bancorp.

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 55.0% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 97,727 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,441,000 after acquiring an additional 34,676 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 56,205 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,404,000 after purchasing an additional 2,458 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 3.9% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 589,799 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,733,000 after purchasing an additional 22,227 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 571.4% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 7,412 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $185,000 after buying an additional 6,308 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 6.0% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 318,298 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,951,000 after buying an additional 17,911 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

First Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ: FFBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the parent of First Financial Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking services through a network of more than 100 full-service banking centers and mortgage offices across Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Its core mission centers on delivering personalized relationship banking to businesses, individuals and public sector clients.

First Financial Bank’s product portfolio includes deposit solutions such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside a range of lending offerings that cover commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, home mortgages and home equity lines of credit.