First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Hits Expectations

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.59, Yahoo Finance reports. The business had revenue of $287.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $201.79 million. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.74% and a return on equity of 11.35%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.76 earnings per share.

First Financial Bancorp. Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ FFBC traded up $0.21 on Friday, hitting $22.57. 465,888 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 282,185. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $21.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.10 and a beta of 1.05. First Financial Bancorp. has a twelve month low of $17.23 and a twelve month high of $24.99.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.08%. First Financial Bancorp.’s payout ratio is presently 37.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, February 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. 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 report on Tuesday, April 9th.

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.