Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST – Get Free Report) Director Rick Day acquired 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was bought at an average price of $31.61 per share, for a total transaction of $47,415.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 269,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,531,570.61. This trade represents a 0.56% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.
Business First Bancshares Trading Down 0.2%
Shares of NASDAQ:BFST opened at $31.94 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $29.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.33 and a beta of 0.78. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.56 and a 12-month high of $32.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.
Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.01. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The business had revenue of $91.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.31 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Business First Bancshares
Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BFST. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares in the first quarter worth about $1,608,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 989,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,761,000 after acquiring an additional 3,540 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 121,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,283,000 after purchasing an additional 3,997 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 63.3% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 18,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 6,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FreeGulliver LLC bought a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the first quarter worth approximately $812,000. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BFST shares. Hovde Group raised their price target on Business First Bancshares from $32.50 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Stephens boosted their price target on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $34.50.
View Our Latest Analysis on Business First Bancshares
About Business First Bancshares
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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