Public Sector Pension Investment Board Reduces Stock Holdings in First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lessened its stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 202,604 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 7,400 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in First Financial Bancorp. were worth $5,112,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 2,976.9% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Financial Bancorp. by 23.1% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,340 shares of the bank’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. during the second quarter worth about $77,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the 2nd quarter valued at about $96,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.23% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other First Financial Bancorp. news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 4,068 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.01, for a total value of $122,080.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 70,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,120,266.52. This trade represents a 5.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider James R. Shank sold 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.34, for a total value of $97,458.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 15,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $404,951.16. The trade was a 19.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,700 shares of company stock valued at $335,429. Insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ:FFBC opened at $29.53 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.82 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73 and a beta of 0.99. First Financial Bancorp. has a 52-week low of $20.07 and a 52-week high of $31.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $26.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $302.82 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $214.00 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.32% and a net margin of 18.55%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. First Financial Bancorp.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.38%.

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.