Short Interest in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Rises By 5.9%

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,260,000 shares, a growth of 5.9% from the May 31st total of 1,190,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 325,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days. Currently, 1.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Financial Bancorp.

In related news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.64, for a total transaction of $248,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 93,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,202,113.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Financial Bank Trust Division raised its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 17.8% during the first quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 1,038,758 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $23,289,000 after buying an additional 157,190 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,625,010 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $157,347,000 after acquiring an additional 155,097 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,138 shares of the bank’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares in the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the fourth quarter valued at $208,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2,655.1% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 518,061 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $12,360,000 after purchasing an additional 499,257 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $24.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Down 2.2 %

FFBC traded down $0.49 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $21.83. The company had a trading volume of 169,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 335,253. The company has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a PE ratio of 9.00 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $17.23 and a 1-year high of $24.99. The business has a 50-day moving average of $22.28 and a 200-day moving average of $22.32.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59. The business had revenue of $287.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $201.79 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.74% and a return on equity of 11.22%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.21%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.10%.

About First Financial Bancorp.

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.