Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) EVP Donald Chad Carter Sells 1,875 Shares of Stock

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) EVP Donald Chad Carter sold 1,875 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.64, for a total transaction of $59,325.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,642 shares in the company, valued at $399,992.88. The trade was a 12.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Business First Bancshares Trading Down 0.2%

BFST stock traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $31.66. The stock had a trading volume of 328,052 shares, compared to its average volume of 207,318. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $30.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 11.23 and a beta of 0.78. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.56 and a 12-month high of $32.39.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 17.07%.The company had revenue of $91.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $91.31 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Saturday, August 15th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BFST. Hovde Group raised their price target on Business First Bancshares from $32.50 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Business First Bancshares from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BFST. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 115.4% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 38,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $937,000 after acquiring an additional 20,620 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 4.5% in the 1st 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. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 1,532.5% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 159,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after purchasing an additional 149,712 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Business First Bancshares by 8.4% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 85,408 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,080,000 after purchasing an additional 6,596 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in Business First Bancshares in the first quarter valued at about $1,150,000. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.