Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Rick D. Day Acquires 1,800 Shares

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Director Rick D. Day bought 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.30 per share, for a total transaction of $36,540.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 262,785 shares in the company, valued at $5,334,535.50. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Business First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of BFST opened at $20.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $528.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 0.94. The business’s 50-day moving average is $21.46 and its 200-day moving average is $21.71. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $13.05 and a fifty-two week high of $25.57.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.71%. Business First Bancshares’s payout ratio is 22.05%.

Institutional Trading of Business First Bancshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 53,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $994,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 27.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 2,946 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 494,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,183,000 after purchasing an additional 3,358 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 5.8% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 62,620 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,175,000 after purchasing an additional 3,450 shares during the period. Finally, Wakefield Asset Management LLLP increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Wakefield Asset Management LLLP now owns 42,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,036,000 after purchasing an additional 3,984 shares during the period. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on BFST shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a report on Monday, January 15th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Business First Bancshares from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded Business First Bancshares from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.33.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

Business First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for b1BANK that provides various banking products and services in Louisiana and Texas. It offers various deposit products and services, including checking, demand, money market, time, and savings accounts; and certificates of deposits, remote deposit capture, and direct deposit services.