American Century Companies Inc. Increases Stake in Business First Bancshares, Inc. $BFST

American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 730,694 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 81,594 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 2.47% of Business First Bancshares worth $17,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC grew its stake in Business First Bancshares by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 17,751 shares of the company’s stock valued at $438,000 after buying an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 22.8% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 2,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 7.4% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 606 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 4.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 32.0% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 789 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Business First Bancshares

In related news, EVP Donald Chad Carter sold 3,778 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.27, for a total transaction of $103,026.06. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,863 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $378,044.01. This trade represents a 21.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Mark P. Folse sold 5,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.75, for a total transaction of $153,093.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 58,140 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,729,665. This represents a 8.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 13,778 shares of company stock worth $399,361 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.45% of the company’s stock.

Business First Bancshares Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of BFST opened at $26.57 on Wednesday. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1-year low of $20.07 and a 1-year high of $30.32. The company has a market capitalization of $869.10 million, a P/E ratio of 9.52 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.03.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.07. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.01% and a return on equity of 11.25%. The firm had revenue of $69.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.41 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, February 15th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BFST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Business First Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Business First Bancshares from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. 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.

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.