First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 817,235 Shares of First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. $FIBK

First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. (NASDAQ:FIBK) by 214.9% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,197,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 817,235 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in First Interstate BancSystem were worth $39,998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors purchased a new stake in First Interstate BancSystem in the fourth quarter worth $92,504,000. State Street Corp increased its position in First Interstate BancSystem by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,482,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $189,686,000 after purchasing an additional 1,254,321 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in First Interstate BancSystem by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,048,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,214,454 shares in the last quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in First Interstate BancSystem by 132.4% in the fourth quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 1,974,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,335,000 after buying an additional 1,124,999 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of First Interstate BancSystem during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,029,000. Institutional investors own 88.71% of the company’s stock.

First Interstate BancSystem Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FIBK opened at $37.76 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $37.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.03. First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.60 and a twelve month high of $40.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.67 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62 and a beta of 0.76.

First Interstate BancSystem (NASDAQ:FIBK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $99.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $249.32 million. First Interstate BancSystem had a net margin of 29.44% and a return on equity of 9.55%. Equities research analysts expect that First Interstate BancSystem, Inc. will post 2.66 EPS for the current year.

First Interstate BancSystem Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. First Interstate BancSystem’s payout ratio is presently 57.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Julie A. Scott sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.97, for a total value of $539,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 488,359 shares in the company, valued at $17,566,273.23. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Jonathan R. Scott sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.29, for a total value of $163,305.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 862,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,286,625.12. This represents a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 32,392 shares of company stock valued at $1,161,552. Insiders own 8.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on FIBK shares. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of First Interstate BancSystem from $44.00 to $41.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on First Interstate BancSystem from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. UBS Group upped their price target on First Interstate BancSystem from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays increased their price objective on First Interstate BancSystem from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective (down from $38.00) on shares of First Interstate BancSystem in a report on Friday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.33.

First Interstate BancSystem Profile

First Interstate BancSystem, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Billings, Montana. Through its principal subsidiary, First Interstate Bank, the company provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking services. Its offerings include business lending, commercial real estate financing, agricultural loans, residential mortgage products, and deposit accounts suitable for individuals, small businesses, and large corporations.

The company traces its roots back to the late 1960s and has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions across the Western United States.