Mark Jason Sr Blade, Sr. Buys 463 Shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Stock

First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Director Mark Jason Sr Blade, Sr. purchased 463 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $42.60 per share, for a total transaction of $19,723.80. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,864 shares in the company, valued at $122,006.40. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

First Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:THFF opened at $43.93 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $518.81 million, a P/E ratio of 11.91 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.57. First Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $34.50 and a 52 week high of $47.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.91 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $82.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $57.95 million. First Financial had a net margin of 14.86% and a return on equity of 8.25%. Equities research analysts forecast that First Financial Co. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. First Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.78%.

Institutional Trading of First Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Country Trust Bank purchased a new stake in First Financial during the second quarter valued at about $111,000. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of First Financial by 6,849.2% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 4,517 shares of the bank’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 4,452 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new stake in First Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $175,000. CWM LLC raised its holdings in First Financial by 102.3% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,098 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 2,578 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in First Financial by 6.0% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 7,043 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. 72.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of First Financial from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

First Financial Company Profile

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.