First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.24

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, January 28th,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of 0.24 per share by the bank on Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.46%.

First Financial Bancorp. has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.7% annually over the last three years. First Financial Bancorp. has a payout ratio of 36.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect First Financial Bancorp. to earn $2.51 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.2%.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

NASDAQ FFBC opened at $27.73 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.95 and a beta of 1.02. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $20.59 and a twelve month high of $31.18.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 18.55% and a return on equity of 10.32%. Equities analysts anticipate that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Richard S. Dennen sold 932 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $27,960.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 74,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,241,600. This represents a 1.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Scott T. Crawley sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.31, for a total transaction of $87,930.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,279 shares in the company, valued at approximately $565,067.49. This trade represents a 13.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,000 shares of company stock worth $237,971. Corporate insiders own 2.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on FFBC. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

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.