Robert Walker Acquires 8,500 Shares of First Guaranty Bancshares (NASDAQ:FGBI) Stock

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) Director Robert Walker acquired 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $10.91 per share, with a total value of $92,735.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 62,621 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,195.11. The trade was a 15.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

First Guaranty Bancshares Stock Down 3.3%

FGBI stock opened at $7.95 on Friday. First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.31 and a twelve month high of $11.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $9.05 and its 200-day moving average is $9.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.49 million, a PE ratio of -3.29 and a beta of 0.42.

First Guaranty Bancshares (NASDAQ:FGBI) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The bank reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $24.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 million. First Guaranty Bancshares had a negative return on equity of 12.25% and a negative net margin of 16.83%. Sell-side analysts expect that First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. will post 0.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Guaranty Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 25th. First Guaranty Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently -1.65%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Guaranty Bancshares to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of First Guaranty Bancshares from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Guaranty Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Guaranty Bancshares

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Guaranty Bancshares by 1,288.4% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 6,942 shares of the bank’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 6,442 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in First Guaranty Bancshares by 135.6% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,478 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 6,606 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in First Guaranty Bancshares by 60.1% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 28,347 shares of the bank’s stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 10,641 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in First Guaranty Bancshares by 11.1% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 49,565 shares of the bank’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 4,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in First Guaranty Bancshares by 8.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 46,048 shares of the bank’s stock worth $355,000 after acquiring an additional 3,742 shares during the period. 39.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Guaranty Bancshares Company Profile

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc is a financial holding company headquartered in Hammond, Louisiana. Through its principal subsidiary, First Guaranty Bank, the company provides a diversified range of commercial and retail banking services. Founded in 1932, First Guaranty Bancshares has grown from a community mutual bank into a publicly traded institution listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker FGBI.

The company’s core business activities encompass traditional deposit products and lending solutions.