Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) Director George Cummings III sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.54, for a total transaction of $428,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 281,180 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,024,877.20. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.
Business First Bancshares Trading Up 0.7%
NASDAQ:BFST opened at $28.69 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $937.59 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 0.79. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.48. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $22.51 and a 12 month high of $30.32.
Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $89.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $90.99 million. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 11.10%. Analysts expect that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Business First Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.28%.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 3.2% in the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 14,510 shares of the company's stock valued at $343,000 after buying an additional 454 shares in the last quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Gator Capital Management LLC now owns 65,967 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 7.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,792 shares of the company's stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 606 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,343 shares of the company's stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 242,669 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,343,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares in the last quarter. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Business First Bancshares from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Stephens set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $33.00 price objective on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Business First Bancshares presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $32.33.
Get Our Latest Analysis on BFST
Business First Bancshares Company Profile
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Get Free Report)
Business First Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Business First Bank, a regional community bank headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals and individual consumers. Business First Bancshares operates under a community-focused model, emphasizing personalized service, local decision-making and relationship banking.
The company’s primary business activities include commercial lending, treasury and cash management, and deposit services.
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