Bank First Co. Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.35 (NASDAQ:BFC)

Bank First Co. (NASDAQ:BFC) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 16th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 26th will be given a dividend of 0.35 per share on Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 26th.

Bank First has increased its dividend payment by an average of 12.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 4 years. Bank First has a dividend payout ratio of 23.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Bank First to earn $6.00 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 23.3%.

Bank First Price Performance

BFC opened at $76.28 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $83.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.42. Bank First has a 12-month low of $65.00 and a 12-month high of $92.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $773.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.91 and a beta of 0.27.

Bank First (NASDAQ:BFC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 16th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.03. Bank First had a return on equity of 10.16% and a net margin of 32.08%. The company had revenue of $75.37 million for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bank First will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Bank First from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Hovde Group downgraded Bank First from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th.

Insider Activity

In other Bank First news, Director Mary Kay Bourbulas acquired 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $82.88 per share, for a total transaction of $49,728.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 7,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $580,408.64. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Phillip R. Maples purchased 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $81.72 per share, for a total transaction of $53,118.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $162,050.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mary Kay Bourbulas purchased 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $82.88 per share, for a total transaction of $49,728.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,003 shares in the company, valued at $580,408.64. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 5.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFC. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Bank First by 24.8% during the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 3,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 652 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in Bank First by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 16,217 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,167,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Bank First by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,360,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Bank First by 22.8% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $696,000 after acquiring an additional 1,796 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Bank First by 56.7% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 4,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $300,000 after acquiring an additional 1,509 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 29.95% of the company’s stock.

About Bank First

Bank First Corporation operates as a holding company for Bank First, N.A. that provides consumer and commercial financial services to businesses, professionals, consumers, associations, individuals, and governmental authorities in Wisconsin. It offers checking, savings, money market, cash management, retirement, and health savings accounts; other time deposits; certificates of deposit; and residential mortgage products.