Royce & Associates LP Purchases 175,284 Shares of Business First Bancshares, Inc. $BFST

Royce & Associates LP raised its position in shares of Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) by 27.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 823,364 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 175,284 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Business First Bancshares were worth $21,523,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BFST. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Business First Bancshares by 115.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 38,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $937,000 after buying an additional 20,620 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Business First Bancshares by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Business First Bancshares by 1,532.5% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 159,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after buying an additional 149,712 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Business First Bancshares by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 85,408 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,080,000 after buying an additional 6,596 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at $1,150,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Business First Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of Business First Bancshares stock opened at $28.20 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 firm has a market capitalization of $921.58 million, a P/E ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.24. 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) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $89.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $90.99 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 17.02%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Business First Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 21.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BFST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Business First Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Stephens set a $33.00 price target on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.33.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

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.