First Trust Advisors LP Has $429,000 Stock Holdings in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF)

First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) by 14.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 9,282 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,196 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in First Financial were worth $429,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in First Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in First Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $73,000. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in First Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $205,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of First Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $213,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $284,000. 72.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at First Financial

In related news, insider Mark Allen Franklin bought 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $52.53 per share, for a total transaction of $57,783.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 9,845 shares in the company, valued at $517,157.85. This represents a 12.58 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director James O. Mcdonald purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.99 per share, for a total transaction of $48,990.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 9,462 shares in the company, valued at $463,543.38. The trade was a 11.82 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders acquired 2,775 shares of company stock worth $139,480. 3.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered First Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of First Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective (up previously from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

First Financial Price Performance

Shares of THFF opened at $50.89 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.04. First Financial Co. has a 1-year low of $34.61 and a 1-year high of $53.60. The company has a market cap of $603.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 0.41.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.26. First Financial had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 8.77%. The company had revenue of $62.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.04 million. On average, research analysts forecast that First Financial Co. will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. First Financial’s payout ratio is 44.16%.

About First Financial

First Financial Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial services. The company offers non-interest-bearing demand, interest-bearing demand, savings, time, and other time deposits. It also provides commercial loans primarily to expand a business or finance asset purchases; residential real estate and residential real estate construction loans; and home equity loans and lines, secured loans, and cash/CD secured and unsecured loans.