Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Rick Day Buys 1,500 Shares of Stock

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Rick Day bought 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.55 per share, with a total value of $41,325.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 267,385 shares in the company, valued at $7,366,456.75. This represents a 0.56% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Business First Bancshares Price Performance

BFST stock opened at $27.26 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $807.30 million, a P/E ratio of 9.77 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s 50-day moving average is $26.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.22. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.07 and a 1 year high of $28.84.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $69.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $81.41 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 17.01%. Analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 28th that permits the company to repurchase $30.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, February 15th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens increased their target price on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. DA Davidson raised their target price on Business First Bancshares from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial increased their price target on shares of Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.00.

Institutional Trading of Business First Bancshares

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BFST. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Business First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, CWM LLC increased its stake in Business First Bancshares by 160.2% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,469 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 1,520 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.