Key Points
- CFO Greg Robertson sold 1,400 shares on December 1 at an average price of $26.41 for $36,974, leaving him with 67,835 shares (a 2.02% decrease in his ownership).
- Business First Bancshares raised its quarterly dividend to $0.15 (annualized $0.60) for a yield of about 2.3%, up from the prior $0.14 quarterly payout.
- Board authorized a $30.0 million share buyback, allowing repurchases of up to roughly 4.2% of outstanding shares, signaling management views the stock as potentially undervalued.
Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) CFO Greg Robertson sold 1,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total transaction of $36,974.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 67,835 shares in the company, valued at $1,791,522.35. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.
Business First Bancshares Stock Performance
Shares of BFST opened at $26.26 on Wednesday. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.07 and a 1 year high of $29.03. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $24.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.47. The company has a market capitalization of $777.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.14 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.
Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.03. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.08% and a net margin of 15.94%.The company had revenue of $80.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $80.50 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.
Business First Bancshares Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, November 30th. Investors of record on Saturday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from Business First Bancshares's previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. Business First Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.17%.
Business First Bancshares announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 28th that allows the company to repurchase $30.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
BFST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.75.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on BFST
Institutional Trading of Business First Bancshares
A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the third quarter worth $29,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares in the third quarter worth about $30,000. FWL Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 160.2% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,469 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 1,520 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.35% of the company's stock.
About Business First Bancshares
(
Get Free Report)
Business First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for b1BANK that provides various banking products and services in Louisiana and Texas. It offers various deposit products and services, including checking, demand, money market, time, and savings accounts; and certificates of deposits, remote deposit capture, and direct deposit services.
Further Reading
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