Towle & Co. Has $3.23 Million Stock Position in First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Towle & Co. decreased its position in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) by 20.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 127,979 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 32,036 shares during the period. Towle & Co. owned 0.15% of First Busey worth $3,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of First Busey by 13.6% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 301,323 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,614,000 after purchasing an additional 36,140 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of First Busey by 3.0% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 157,376 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,977,000 after buying an additional 4,639 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of First Busey by 4.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,067,210 shares of the bank’s stock worth $128,046,000 after buying an additional 194,343 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new stake in shares of First Busey during the first quarter worth approximately $124,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in First Busey in the first quarter valued at approximately $628,000. 56.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings raised First Busey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research upgraded First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Stephens lifted their price objective on First Busey from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on First Busey from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Busey presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.75.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Scott A. Phillips acquired 5,000 shares of First Busey stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $25.90 per share, with a total value of $129,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,265. This represents a 149.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE opened at $29.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. First Busey Corporation has a twelve month low of $21.63 and a twelve month high of $30.51. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $28.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.59. The firm has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.14 and a beta of 0.72.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.10. First Busey had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 10.19%. The company had revenue of $197.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $197.15 million. On average, analysts forecast that First Busey Corporation will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.22%.

First Busey Profile

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.