First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) Upgraded by Raymond James to Outperform Rating

Raymond James upgraded shares of First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research note published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $54.00 price objective on the bank’s stock.

First Financial Stock Performance

Shares of First Financial stock traded up $0.13 during trading on Thursday, hitting $46.11. 19,652 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 46,498. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.10. First Financial has a 52-week low of $34.58 and a 52-week high of $51.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $544.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 0.50.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.91 by ($0.17). First Financial had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 14.86%. The business had revenue of $82.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $57.95 million. On average, research analysts forecast that First Financial will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This is a boost from First Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.42%. First Financial’s payout ratio is presently 48.78%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in THFF. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of First Financial by 62.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,457 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,643,000 after purchasing an additional 14,349 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in First Financial by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 273,544 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,997,000 after acquiring an additional 4,743 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in First Financial during the third quarter worth about $279,000. Dean Investment Associates LLC acquired a new position in First Financial during the third quarter worth about $2,856,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in First Financial by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 13,704 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 2,154 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.74% of the company’s stock.

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.