Stanley J. Bradshaw Purchases 1,000 Shares of First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE) Stock

First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE) Director Stanley J. Bradshaw bought 1,000 shares of First Busey stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $21.63 per share, for a total transaction of $21,630.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 489,769 shares in the company, valued at $10,593,703.47. The trade was a 0.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

First Busey Stock Down 0.3%

BUSE opened at $22.18 on Friday. First Busey Co. has a 12 month low of $18.40 and a 12 month high of $28.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 0.75. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $21.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.21.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.04. First Busey had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 17.14%. The firm had revenue of $140.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $140.15 million. As a group, research analysts predict that First Busey Co. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 18th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.51%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 17th. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on BUSE shares. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of First Busey in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Busey from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Raymond James dropped their price target on First Busey from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of First Busey in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $27.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Busey

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in First Busey by 1,173.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,439 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,326 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in First Busey by 161.1% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,697 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in First Busey by 822.7% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,707 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its stake in First Busey by 507.5% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,786 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,492 shares in the last quarter. 56.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About First Busey

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.