First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Plans $0.23 Quarterly Dividend

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 25th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of 0.23 per share by the bank on Monday, June 17th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd.

First Financial Bancorp. has a dividend payout ratio of 40.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect First Financial Bancorp. to earn $2.26 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.92 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 40.7%.

First Financial Bancorp. Price Performance

NASDAQ:FFBC traded up $0.21 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $22.57. 465,888 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 282,185. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1 year low of $17.23 and a 1 year high of $24.99. The company has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.10 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $21.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $21.64.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.59. First Financial Bancorp. had a net margin of 20.74% and a return on equity of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $287.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $201.79 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FFBC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Friday, February 23rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock.

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.