Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stephens Analyst Says

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) had its price target raised by investment analysts at Stephens from $34.00 to $36.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Stephens’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 18.15% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Hovde Group boosted their target price on Business First Bancshares from $32.50 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $34.00.

Business First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BFST opened at $30.47 on Friday. Business First Bancshares has a 52-week low of $22.56 and a 52-week high of $31.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The business has a fifty day moving average of $29.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.22. The stock has a market cap of $995.76 million, a PE ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 0.78.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.02% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The business had revenue of $91.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.31 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Business First Bancshares will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Business First Bancshares

In other news, Director George W. Cummings III sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.54, for a total transaction of $428,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 281,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,024,877.20. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 36,595 shares of company stock worth $1,031,732 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 5.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Business First Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFST. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 255.8% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 441,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,948,000 after buying an additional 317,650 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in Business First Bancshares by 27.0% in the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 823,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,523,000 after acquiring an additional 175,284 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $3,883,000 after acquiring an additional 149,712 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 467.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 107,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,542,000 after acquiring an additional 88,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,165,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,520,000 after acquiring an additional 81,833 shares during the last quarter. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Business First Bancshares News

Here are the key news stories impacting Business First Bancshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BFST reported Q2 earnings of $0.71 per share, edging past analyst expectations by $0.01 and up from $0.66 a year ago, a sign of steady profitability. Business First Bancshares earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, signaling continued capital return to shareholders and implying an annualized yield of about 2.0%. Business First Bancshares dividend announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Sector-wide commentary on regional banks was supportive, with lenders reporting stronger net interest income, loan and deposit growth, and improved credit quality, which may be helping sentiment around BFST. Regional banks earnings sector update
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue for the quarter came in at $91.0 million, slightly below the $91.31 million consensus estimate, so the quarter was a modest earnings beat but not a clear top-line surprise. Business First Bancshares earnings report

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.