Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $30.37 and last traded at $30.3020, with a volume of 3897 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $30.15.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BFST. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Stephens set a $33.00 price objective on Business First Bancshares in a report on Monday, April 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Business First Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.33.

Business First Bancshares Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.15 and a 200 day moving average of $27.70. The company has a market capitalization of $987.33 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.74 and a beta of 0.79. 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) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $89.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.99 million. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 11.10%. As a group, analysts predict that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3 EPS for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.28%.

Insider Transactions at Business First Bancshares

In related news, Director George W. Cummings III sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.54, for a total value of $428,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 281,180 shares in the company, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 36,595 shares of company stock valued at $1,031,732 in the last quarter. 5.67% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 15,600.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,099 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,092 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Business First Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Business First Bancshares by 389.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,669 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 2,124 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in Business First Bancshares by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 1,188 shares during the period. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.