Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Reiterates Market Perform Rating for First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF)

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating reissued by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $55.00 price target on the bank’s stock, up from their previous price target of $52.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 6.24% from the stock’s previous close.

Separately, Raymond James upgraded First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th.

First Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:THFF traded down $0.23 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $51.77. 12,155 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 47,326. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.37. First Financial has a 1 year low of $34.58 and a 1 year high of $52.10. The company has a market cap of $611.40 million, a P/E ratio of 14.04 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.08. First Financial had a net margin of 14.86% and a return on equity of 8.10%. Equities analysts predict that First Financial will post 3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in First Financial by 10.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 230,332 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,100,000 after buying an additional 22,287 shares in the last quarter. 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 acquiring an additional 14,349 shares during the period. Creative Planning lifted its position in First Financial by 57.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 47,665 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,090,000 after purchasing an additional 17,322 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in First Financial by 81.2% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 73,144 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,698,000 after purchasing an additional 32,783 shares during the period. Finally, Dean Investment Associates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,856,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.74% of the company’s stock.

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.