Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Mark Folse Sells 4,854 Shares

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Mark Folse sold 4,854 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.51, for a total value of $143,241.54. Following the sale, the director owned 53,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,572,469.86. The trade was a 8.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Business First Bancshares Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:BFST opened at $29.22 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.07 and a 1 year high of $30.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $865.35 million, a P/E ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.86. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.46.

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

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, February 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is 21.51%.

Business First Bancshares announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $30.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BFST. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its position in Business First Bancshares by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 14,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC grew its position in Business First Bancshares by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 17,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 22.8% in the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 2,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 7.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 606 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 624 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BFST. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

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.