Richard Dennen Sells 20,000 Shares of First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) Stock

February 5, 2026 by InsiderTrades.com

Key Points

Richard Dennen sold 20,000 shares of FFBC on Feb. 4 at an average price of $30.20 for about $604,000, cutting his ownership by ~24.4% to 61,856 shares (≈$1.87M).
First Financial beat Q4 estimates, reporting $0.80 EPS vs. $0.78 expected and $251.3M revenue vs. $249M, with ROE of 10.77% and a 20.3% net margin, fueling analyst upgrades and a 52‑week high.
Dividend announced: a $0.25 quarterly dividend ($1.00 annualized) representing a ~3.3% yield, with record date March 2 and payment on March 16.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) insider Richard Dennen sold 20,000 shares of First Financial Bancorp. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.20, for a total transaction of $604,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 61,856 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,868,051.20. The trade was a 24.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

First Financial Bancorp. Stock Performance

NASDAQ FFBC opened at $30.12 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $26.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.44. The company has a market capitalization of $2.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 1.00. First Financial Bancorp. has a 1-year low of $21.10 and a 1-year high of $30.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.02. First Financial Bancorp. had a return on equity of 10.77% and a net margin of 20.30%.The company had revenue of $251.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $249.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that First Financial Bancorp. will post 2.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Financial Bancorp. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. First Financial Bancorp.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FFBC. Bogart Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in First Financial Bancorp. during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. MAI Capital Management lifted its position in First Financial Bancorp. by 530.6% during the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,545 shares of the bank's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in First Financial Bancorp. by 2,741.3% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,790 shares of the bank's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 1,727 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of First Financial Bancorp. in the third quarter worth $47,000. 77.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Financial Bancorp. News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting First Financial Bancorp. this week:

Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised price targets and notes — several firms lifted targets (Truist to $30; other outlets reported $32 and $34), supporting upside expectations and likely driving buying interest. Read More.
Positive Sentiment: Stock reached a new 52‑week high after upgrades — the fresh high is a technical catalyst that can attract momentum buyers and index/inflow activity. Read More.
Positive Sentiment: Q4 results and investor Q&A kept confidence intact — management’s earnings beat and analysts’ Q&A reinforced the view of steady core performance and supported recent positive estimates. Read More.
Neutral Sentiment: Local community giving — First Financial disclosed ~$124k in 2025 donations (positive PR but negligible direct financial impact). Read More.
Neutral Sentiment: Peer/comparison coverage — third‑party comparisons with regional peers provide context but are unlikely to move the stock alone. Read More.
Negative Sentiment: Large insider sale disclosed (Richard S. Dennen) — Dennen sold 20,000 shares at an average $30.20 (~$604k), trimming his stake by ~24.4%; sizable insider sales can worry some investors about near‑term insider conviction. Read More.
Negative Sentiment: Additional insider selling (Gregory A. Harris) — Harris sold 1,821 shares at ~$29.43; smaller in scale but adds to the narrative of insiders trimming positions. Read More.
Negative Sentiment: Cost/headcount action at Seville operations center — First Financial will cut 56 jobs at a recently acquired operations center; while cost control can be positive long term, layoffs and integration risk can create short‑term execution concerns. Read More.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on FFBC shares. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on First Financial Bancorp. from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings raised First Financial Bancorp. from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $28.00 price target (down from $30.00) on shares of First Financial Bancorp. in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of First Financial Bancorp. from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.50.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on FFBC

First Financial Bancorp. Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

First Financial Bancorp (NASDAQ: FFBC) is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the parent of First Financial Bank. The company provides a comprehensive suite of commercial and consumer banking services through a network of more than 100 full-service banking centers and mortgage offices across Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Its core mission centers on delivering personalized relationship banking to businesses, individuals and public sector clients.

First Financial Bank's product portfolio includes deposit solutions such as checking, savings and money market accounts, alongside a range of lending offerings that cover commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, home mortgages and home equity lines of credit.