Bayview Asset Management LLC Buys New Shares in First Financial Bancorp. $FFBC

Bayview Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 60,000 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,501,000. First Financial Bancorp. comprises 0.3% of Bayview Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 1,526 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management grew its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 530.6% during the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,545 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in First Financial Bancorp. by 38.7% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,743 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co acquired a new position in First Financial Bancorp. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 472 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at First Financial Bancorp.

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider Claude E. Davis sold 26,123 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.45, for a total transaction of $795,445.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $925,984.50. This represents a 46.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Archie M. Brown sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.93, for a total value of $309,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 243,758 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,539,434.94. This represents a 3.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,126 shares of company stock worth $1,255,501. Insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FFBC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of First Financial Bancorp. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Stephens started coverage on First Financial Bancorp. in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $33.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $34.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, First Financial Bancorp. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Up 1.6%

FFBC opened at $32.30 on Friday. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $22.93 and a twelve month high of $32.31. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $30.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.24. The stock has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is 35.34%.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.