Bank First (NASDAQ:BFC) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Time to Buy?

Bank First Co. (NASDAQ:BFC - Get Free Report) shares saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 33,591 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 50% from the previous session's volume of 22,323 shares.The stock last traded at $114.34 and had previously closed at $115.65.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Hovde Group upgraded Bank First from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $130.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Bank First from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th.

Bank First Stock Performance

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $108.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The stock has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.99 and a beta of 0.42.

Bank First (NASDAQ:BFC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.20. Bank First had a net margin of 29.00% and a return on equity of 10.53%. The firm had revenue of $43.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $41.80 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bank First Co. will post 6.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank First Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $3.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This is a boost from Bank First's previous dividend of $0.20. Bank First's payout ratio is 26.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Daniel C. Mcconeghy purchased 380 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $105.72 per share, with a total value of $40,173.60. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $211,440. This trade represents a 23.46% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 3.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bank First

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Bank First during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Bank First by 771.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 305 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Bank First by 176.3% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 572 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Bank First during the 4th quarter valued at $189,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Bank First by 17,300.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $193,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 29.95% of the company's stock.

About Bank First

Bank First Corporation operates as a holding company for Bank First, N.A. that provides consumer and commercial financial services to businesses, professionals, consumers, associations, individuals, and governmental authorities in Wisconsin. It offers checking, savings, money market, cash management, retirement, and health savings accounts; other time deposits; certificates of deposit; and residential mortgage products.