Insider Buying: Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) CFO Acquires $95,527.50 in Stock

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST – Get Rating) CFO Greg Robertson acquired 6,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $14.10 per share, for a total transaction of $95,527.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 60,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $853,064.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Business First Bancshares Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of BFST opened at $13.89 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $351.69 million, a P/E ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 0.78. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.05 and a 12-month high of $25.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $16.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.06.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.02. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 19.96% and a return on equity of 13.77%. The company had revenue of $61.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $61.34 million. Equities research analysts expect that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 15th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 12th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BFST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TheStreet lowered shares of Business First Bancshares from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Friday, April 28th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BFST. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY grew its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 44.5% in the fourth quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 1,617 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 93.7% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 1,279 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank purchased a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $90,000. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA grew its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 65.3% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Arbitrage SA now owns 5,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 2,065 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $135,000. 30.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

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Business First Bancshares, Inc is a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of banking products and services through its subsidiary. It also offers commercial and personal banking, treasury management, and wealth solutions services. The company was founded on July 20, 2006 and is headquartered in Baton Rouge, LA.