DA Davidson Reaffirms Buy Rating for Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST)

Key Points

• DA Davidson reaffirmed a "Buy" rating on Business First Bancshares with a $33 price objective, implying roughly 19% upside; the consensus analyst target is about $32.33 with four Buy ratings.
• Q1 results mixed: EPS beat at $0.73 vs. $0.69 while revenue missed ($89.25M vs. ~$92.45M); management closed the Progressive Bancorp acquisition, is targeting a 1.25% ROAA run‑rate by year‑end, and maintained a $0.15 quarterly dividend (~2.2% yield).
• Insiders sold ~13,778 shares (~$399K) in the past three months (insider ownership 5.67%), while institutional ownership is 47.35% and several funds (notably AQR and Millennium) significantly increased positions.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by research analysts at DA Davidson in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $33.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson's price target would suggest a potential upside of 19.09% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings raised Business First Bancshares from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Stephens set a $33.00 target price on Business First Bancshares in a report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.33.

Business First Bancshares Stock Up 2.6%

BFST stock traded up $0.70 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $27.71. 53,633 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 177,701. The stock has a market cap of $905.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.90 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Business First Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $22.51 and a fifty-two week high of $30.32. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $27.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.76.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $89.25 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.45 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.25% and a net margin of 17.01%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Business First Bancshares will post 3.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Business First Bancshares

In other Business First Bancshares news, Director Mark P. Folse sold 5,146 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.75, for a total transaction of $153,093.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 58,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,729,665. This represents a 8.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Donald Chad Carter sold 3,778 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.27, for a total value of $103,026.06. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 13,863 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $378,044.01. This trade represents a 21.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 13,778 shares of company stock valued at $399,361. 5.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BFST. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 115.4% during 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. raised its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,343 shares of the company's stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 1,532.5% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 159,481 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,883,000 after acquiring an additional 149,712 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 85,408 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,080,000 after acquiring an additional 6,596 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at $1,150,000. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Business First Bancshares

Here are the key news stories impacting Business First Bancshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings beat — BFST reported core EPS of $0.73 for Q1, topping consensus and showing improvement year‑over‑year on a core basis; the beat supports valuation (~P/E ~9.9) and investor confidence. Business First (BFST) Tops Q1 Earnings Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management guidance and integration plan — Management is targeting a 1.25% ROAA run‑rate by year‑end while integrating the acquired Progressive Bancorp and expanding banking staff in Houston, signaling cost/scale benefits and revenue growth opportunities. Business First targets 1.25% ROAA end-of-year run rate while integrating Progressive and adding bankers in Houston
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend maintained — The board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.15/share (annualized yield ~2.2%), supporting income investors and indicating steady capital return policy.
• Neutral Sentiment: Detailed Q1 results — Press releases show GAAP net income of $22.2M ($0.68/sh) and non‑GAAP core net income of $24.0M ($0.73/sh); the quarter included the Progressive acquisition close. These details underpin the EPS beat but require watching integration execution. Business First Bancshares, Inc., Announces Financial Results for Q1 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed analyst estimates — Q1 revenue of $89.25M came in below consensus (~$92.45M), which trims the upside from the EPS beat and raises questions about fee/loan growth or margin drivers in early 2026. Listen to Conference Call / View Press Release

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.

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