First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH) Short Interest Update

First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 232,325 shares, a drop of 25.0% from the February 26th total of 309,952 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 121,975 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FMBH has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of First Mid Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on First Mid Bancshares from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.75.

Insider Activity at First Mid Bancshares

In other news, EVP Bradley L. Beesley sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.00, for a total value of $264,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 12,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $544,632. This represents a 32.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of First Mid Bancshares

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 147.2% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 848 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of First Mid Bancshares during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of First Mid Bancshares during the first quarter valued at $42,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 272.5% during the third quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 1,052 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in First Mid Bancshares by 32.0% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,710 shares of the bank’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. 47.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Mid Bancshares Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of FMBH traded up $0.20 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $40.86. The company had a trading volume of 48,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 116,859. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $41.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.65. First Mid Bancshares has a 52-week low of $27.58 and a 52-week high of $44.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96.

First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.06. The company had revenue of $90.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.86 million. First Mid Bancshares had a net margin of 19.69% and a return on equity of 10.44%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that First Mid Bancshares will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Mid Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. First Mid Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.04%.

First Mid Bancshares Company Profile

First Mid Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: FMBH), headquartered in Mattoon, Illinois, is a financial services holding company that offers a comprehensive suite of banking products and services through its main subsidiary, First Mid Bank & Trust. The company’s primary business activities include commercial and retail banking, mortgage origination and servicing, wealth management and trust administration, as well as treasury and cash management solutions.

Through its branch network, First Mid provides consumer deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit and online banking services.