First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) Short Interest Up 23.0% in February

First Financial Co. (NASDAQ:THFF) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 55,600 shares, a growth of 23.0% from the February 13th total of 45,200 shares. Currently, 0.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 55,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on THFF shares. Raymond James raised First Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $54.00 target price for the company in a research note 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 objective on the stock in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective (up from $52.00) on shares of First Financial in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of First Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in THFF. First Financial Corp IN raised its position in shares of First Financial by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 761,654 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,181,000 after acquiring an additional 8,237 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in First Financial by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 275,748 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,740,000 after purchasing an additional 2,204 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Financial by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 235,412 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,874,000 after buying an additional 19,867 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of First Financial by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 230,332 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,100,000 after buying an additional 22,287 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of First Financial by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 135,224 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,246,000 after buying an additional 1,386 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.74% of the company’s stock.

First Financial Price Performance

THFF opened at $50.64 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $600.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $49.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.00. First Financial has a 12-month low of $34.58 and a 12-month high of $53.60.

First Financial (NASDAQ:THFF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The bank reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts expect that First Financial will post 5.41 earnings per share for the current year.

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.