First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) Short Interest Up 25.1% in March

First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 67,326 shares, an increase of 25.1% from the February 26th total of 53,801 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 28,158 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 0.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Business Financial Services

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of First Business Financial Services by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 1,848 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new position in First Business Financial Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in First Business Financial Services by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 38,327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,081,000 after purchasing an additional 1,666 shares in the last quarter. Vista Investment Management lifted its stake in First Business Financial Services by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 52,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,864,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in First Business Financial Services during the fourth quarter worth $250,000. 60.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on First Business Financial Services from $59.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Business Financial Services in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $68.00 price target on shares of First Business Financial Services in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (up from $61.00) on shares of First Business Financial Services in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $67.00.

First Business Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of FBIZ stock traded up $1.12 during trading on Monday, hitting $54.11. The company had a trading volume of 26,423 shares, compared to its average volume of 30,509. The firm has a market capitalization of $451.28 million, a P/E ratio of 9.09 and a beta of 0.75. First Business Financial Services has a one year low of $42.18 and a one year high of $60.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $55.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.73.

First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $42.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.10 million. First Business Financial Services had a return on equity of 14.77% and a net margin of 18.02%. Equities analysts expect that First Business Financial Services will post 5.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Business Financial Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, February 28th. Investors of record on Saturday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a positive change from First Business Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. First Business Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.86%.

About First Business Financial Services

First Business Financial Services, Inc (NASDAQ:FBIZ) is a bank holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, offering a suite of commercial banking and financial services. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, First Business Bank, the company provides relationship-driven lending, deposit and treasury management solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, nonprofit organizations and high-net-worth individuals. Its core products include commercial real estate financing, equipment leasing, SBA-guaranteed lending, and cash management services.

In addition to lending and depository services, First Business Bank delivers investment advisory and wealth management through dedicated trust and private banking teams.