First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) Receives $27.00 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $27.00.

Several research firms recently weighed in on BUSE. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $27.00 price target on shares of First Busey in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price objective (down from $28.00) on shares of First Busey in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of First Busey from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First Busey in a report on Monday, December 29th.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE stock opened at $25.89 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $25.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.18. The stock has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.07 and a beta of 0.78. First Busey has a 12 month low of $18.40 and a 12 month high of $27.65.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $201.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.70 million. First Busey had a net margin of 12.96% and a return on equity of 9.59%. On average, equities analysts expect that First Busey will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 23rd were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 23rd. This is a positive change from First Busey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio is 80.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Busey

In other First Busey news, President Mike Maddox purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.52 per share, with a total value of $25,520.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the president directly owned 40,280 shares in the company, valued at $1,027,945.60. This trade represents a 2.55% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 2,250 shares of company stock valued at $57,165 in the last three months. 3.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of First Busey

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of First Busey by 94.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,135,906 shares of the bank’s stock worth $165,196,000 after acquiring an additional 3,464,965 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in First Busey by 36,664.6% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,131,973 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,510,000 after purchasing an additional 3,123,454 shares during the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new stake in First Busey in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $20,113,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in First Busey by 99.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 933,467 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,362,000 after buying an additional 464,859 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. bought a new position in shares of First Busey during the 3rd quarter valued at $9,607,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.49% of the company’s stock.

About First Busey

First Busey (NASDAQ: BUSE) is a bank holding company headquartered in Champaign, Illinois, with roots tracing back to the founding of Busey Bank in 1868. As a regional financial institution, it offers a broad spectrum of banking services to individuals, small businesses, and corporations. Its core activities include commercial lending, deposit-taking, and cash management, which are tailored to meet the needs of local communities across its operating footprint.

In addition to traditional banking operations, First Busey provides wealth management and trust services through its subsidiary aimed at high-net-worth clients and fiduciary accounts.