Insider Selling: Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Sells $143,241.54 in Stock

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

Business First Bancshares Trading Up 0.5%

BFST opened at $29.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.07 and a 52 week high of $30.32. The business’s 50 day moving average is $27.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.52. The firm has a market cap of $863.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.45 and a beta of 0.86.

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

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

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on BFST shares. Stephens upped 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, January 23rd. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Business First Bancshares from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Business First Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $33.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BFST. Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 27.0% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 823,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,523,000 after buying an additional 175,284 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 1,532.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 159,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after acquiring an additional 149,712 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Business First Bancshares by 467.0% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 107,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,542,000 after acquiring an additional 88,693 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Business First Bancshares by 13.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 697,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,190,000 after acquiring an additional 82,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 730,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,252,000 after purchasing an additional 81,594 shares during the period. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.