BOKF NA reduced its position in shares of Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Free Report) by 73.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,928 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,444 shares during the period. BOKF NA's holdings in Business First Bancshares were worth $255,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BFST. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 164,612 shares of the company's stock worth $4,231,000 after purchasing an additional 3,809 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 28,971 shares of the company's stock valued at $745,000 after purchasing an additional 6,109 shares during the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $921,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 88.0% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 16,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $417,000 after purchasing an additional 7,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 4th quarter worth about $218,000. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, Director Rick D. Day bought 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.46 per share, with a total value of $38,190.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 264,285 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,728,696.10. The trade was a 0.57% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 5.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
BFST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Raymond James cut their target price on Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Hovde Group upgraded Business First Bancshares from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $31.50 to $33.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price target on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th.
View Our Latest Research Report on Business First Bancshares
Business First Bancshares Stock Down 0.6%
BFST stock traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.78. The stock had a trading volume of 100,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 90,137. The firm has a market cap of $735.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.96 and a beta of 0.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $23.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.73. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.97 and a 52-week high of $30.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99.
Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $79.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $77.54 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.88% and a net margin of 14.19%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.26%. Business First Bancshares's payout ratio is 23.05%.
Business First Bancshares Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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