Acropolis Investment Management LLC Takes $580,000 Position in First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Acropolis Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 25,333 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $580,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in First Busey by 56.4% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,251 shares of the bank’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Busey by 726.1% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,280 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 2,004 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in First Busey by 34.3% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,389 shares of the bank’s stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 865 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in First Busey by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 8,745 shares of the bank’s stock worth $200,000 after buying an additional 648 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in First Busey by 585.6% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 9,742 shares of the bank’s stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 8,321 shares in the last quarter. 56.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of First Busey stock opened at $25.30 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.00 and a beta of 0.80. First Busey Corporation has a 52 week low of $18.40 and a 52 week high of $25.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $23.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.50.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 20th. The bank reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter. First Busey had a net margin of 11.00% and a return on equity of 9.05%. The business had revenue of $63.34 million during the quarter. Research analysts forecast that First Busey Corporation will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 24th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 24th. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 86.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Busey

In other news, CAO Scott A. Phillips bought 1,350 shares of First Busey stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $25.64 per share, with a total value of $34,614.00. Following the acquisition, the chief accounting officer owned 2,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,254. This trade represents a 135.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President Mike Maddox purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.52 per share, for a total transaction of $25,520.00. Following the purchase, the president directly owned 40,280 shares in the company, valued at $1,027,945.60. The trade was a 2.55% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 3.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on BUSE shares. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of First Busey from $30.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First Busey in a research note on Monday. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 price target (down previously from $28.00) on shares of First Busey in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.33.

First Busey Profile

First Busey Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Busey Bank that engages in the provision of retail and commercial banking products and services to individual, corporate, institutional, and governmental customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Banking, Wealth Management, and FirsTech.