8,858 Shares in First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Acquired by Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 8,858 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $409,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in First Financial in the third quarter valued at $279,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Financial by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 97,608 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,280,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of First Financial by 420.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the bank’s stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 3,165 shares in the last quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P raised its position in shares of First Financial by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 45,845 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,010,000 after acquiring an additional 1,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC purchased a new stake in First Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $230,000. 72.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James raised shares of First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded shares of First Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target (up from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insider Transactions at First Financial

In other First Financial news, Director James O. Mcdonald purchased 1,000 shares of First Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $48.99 per share, with a total value of $48,990.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 9,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $463,543.38. This represents a 11.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Mark Allen Franklin acquired 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $52.53 per share, with a total value of $57,783.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $517,157.85. This represents a 12.58 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders bought 2,195 shares of company stock worth $111,625. Company insiders own 3.69% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Stock Performance

Shares of THFF opened at $49.09 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $50.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.33. The firm has a market cap of $581.86 million, a PE ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 0.49. First Financial Co. has a 12-month low of $34.58 and a 12-month high of $53.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by $0.08. First Financial had a net margin of 15.37% and a return on equity of 8.77%. As a group, equities analysts predict that First Financial Co. will post 5.41 EPS for the current year.

First Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.16%. First Financial’s payout ratio is currently 51.00%.

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.