First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.45

First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) announced a quarterly dividend on Monday, June 24th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be given a dividend of 0.45 per share by the bank on Monday, July 15th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.10%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 1st.

First Financial has raised its dividend payment by an average of 13.7% annually over the last three years. First Financial has a payout ratio of 34.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect First Financial to earn $5.12 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 35.2%.

First Financial Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of THFF traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $35.30. The company had a trading volume of 13,363 shares, compared to its average volume of 44,700. The stock has a market cap of $416.89 million, a PE ratio of 7.49 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. First Financial has a 1-year low of $31.74 and a 1-year high of $44.91. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $36.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.38.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The bank reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $48.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.75 million. First Financial had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 20.16%. Sell-side analysts forecast that First Financial will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $43.00 target price (down from $45.00) on shares of First Financial in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st.

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.