First Financial to acquire CedarStone Financial for $19.12 per share in cash

First Financial (THFF) and CedarStone Financial announced the execution of a definitive agreement under which First Financial will acquire CedarStone. First Financial will pay $19.12 per share in cash for each share of CedarStone’s common stock outstanding. The aggregate value of the transaction is $25.0 million. Upon completion of the merger, CedarStone Bank, a wholly owned subsidiary of CedarStone will merge into First Financial Bank, a wholly owned subsidiary of First Financial. CedarStone, headquartered in Lebanon, Tennessee, has approximately $358 million in assets and operates 3 bank branches in Tennessee. Through its branch network, CedarStone services the communities of Lebanon, Mount Juliet and Nashville. First Financial, headquartered in Terre Haute, Indiana, has assets of approximately $5.7 billion and operates 79 banking centers in Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee through First Financial Bank. If the proposed merger is completed as expected, it is anticipated that First Financial will have total combined consolidated assets of approximately $6.1 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2026 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including, but not limited to, receipt of regulatory and CedarStone stockholder approvals.