First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $53.36 and last traded at $52.52, with a volume of 165005 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $52.58.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FMBH has been the subject of several research reports. DA Davidson boosted their price target on First Mid Bancshares from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of First Mid Bancshares from $55.00 to $62.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of First Mid Bancshares from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.62.

First Mid Bancshares Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $47.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.01. The stock has a market cap of $1.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.93 and a beta of 0.79.

First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.21. First Mid Bancshares had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 11.17%. The company had revenue of $109.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $107.42 million. On average, analysts expect that First Mid Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Mid Bancshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from First Mid Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. First Mid Bancshares’s payout ratio is 24.81%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 256.9% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 105,648 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,687,000 after purchasing an additional 76,050 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in First Mid Bancshares by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,566 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $473,000 after buying an additional 550 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in First Mid Bancshares by 1,662.9% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,231 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 3,991 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in First Mid Bancshares by 31.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 72,134 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,517,000 after buying an additional 17,266 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 494.1% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 32,755 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after acquiring an additional 27,242 shares during the last quarter. 47.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First Mid Bancshares

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.