Fintel reports that on April 21, 2023, Stephens & Co. reiterated coverage of First Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ:FFBC) with a Equal-Weight recommendation.
Analyst Price Forecast Suggests 22.26% Upside
As of April 6, 2023, the average one-year price target for First Financial Bancorp is $25.30. The forecasts range from a low of $23.23 to a high of $29.40. The average price target represents an increase of 22.26% from its latest reported closing price of $20.69.
See our leaderboard of companies with the largest price target upside.
The projected annual revenue for First Financial Bancorp is $813MM, an increase of 12.22%. The projected annual non-GAAP EPS is $2.60.
First Financial Bancorp Declares $0.23 Dividend
On January 26, 2023 the company declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.23 per share ($0.92 annualized). Shareholders of record as of March 1, 2023 received the payment on March 15, 2023. Previously, the company paid $0.23 per share.
At the current share price of $20.69 / share, the stock's dividend yield is 4.45%. Looking back five years and taking a sample every week, the average dividend yield has been 4.14%, the lowest has been 2.32%, and the highest has been 7.62%. The standard deviation of yields is 1.19 (n=236).
The current dividend yield is 0.26 standard deviations above the historical average.
Additionally, the company's dividend payout ratio is 0.35. The payout ratio tells us how much of a company's income is paid out in dividends. A payout ratio of one (1.0) means 100% of the company's income is paid in a dividend. A payout ratio greater than one means the company is dipping into savings in order to maintain its dividend - not a healthy situation. Companies with few growth prospects are expected to pay out most of their income in dividends, which typically means a payout ratio between 0.5 and 1.0. Companies with good growth prospects are expected to retain some earnings in order to invest in those growth prospects, which translates to a payout ratio of zero to 0.5.
The company has not increased its dividend in the last three years.
What is the Fund Sentiment?
There are 509 funds or institutions reporting positions in First Financial Bancorp. This is an increase of 10 owner(s) or 2.00% in the last quarter. Average portfolio weight of all funds dedicated to FFBC is 0.13%, a decrease of 4.53%. Total shares owned by institutions decreased in the last three months by 0.01% to 86,681K shares. 
The put/call ratio of FFBC is 0.35, indicating a bullish outlook.
What are Other Shareholders Doing?
IJR - iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF holds 6,451K shares representing 6.78% ownership of the company. No change in the last quarter.
Macquarie Group holds 6,129K shares representing 6.44% ownership of the company. In it's prior filing, the firm reported owning 6,209K shares, representing a decrease of 1.31%. The firm increased its portfolio allocation in FFBC by 9.20% over the last quarter.
Jpmorgan Chase holds 3,440K shares representing 3.61% ownership of the company. In it's prior filing, the firm reported owning 3,475K shares, representing a decrease of 1.01%. The firm increased its portfolio allocation in FFBC by 4.47% over the last quarter.
VTSMX - Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Investor Shares holds 2,722K shares representing 2.86% ownership of the company. In it's prior filing, the firm reported owning 2,659K shares, representing an increase of 2.34%. The firm increased its portfolio allocation in FFBC by 8.69% over the last quarter.
Fort Washington Investment Advisors holds 2,607K shares representing 2.74% ownership of the company. No change in the last quarter.
First Financial Bancorp Background Information
(This description is provided by the company.)
First Financial Bancorp is a Cincinnati, Ohio based bank holding company. As of June 30, 2020, the Company had $15.9 billion in assets, $10.2 billion in loans, $11.7 billion in deposits and $2.2 billion in shareholders' equity. The Company's subsidiary, First Financial Bank, founded in 1863, provides banking and financial services products through its six lines of business: Commercial, Retail Banking, Investment Commercial Real Estate, Mortgage Banking, Commercial Finance and Wealth Management. These business units provide traditional banking services to business and retail clients. Wealth Management provides wealth planning, portfolio management, trust and estate, brokerage and retirement plan services and had approximately $2.8 billion in assets under management as of June 30, 2020. The Company operated 141 full service banking centers as of June 30, 2020, primarily in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky, while the Commercial Finance business lends into targeted industry verticals on a nationwide basis.
See all First Financial Bancorp regulatory filings.This story originally appeared on Fintel.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
