American Century Companies Inc. Has $37.40 Million Stock Holdings in First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its ownership in First Busey Corporation by 54.2% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 608,470 shares and now holds a total of 1,731,366 shares valued at approximately $37.4 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on First Busey, with recent price targets ranging from $26.00 to $30.00, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $27.17.
• First Busey recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 4.3%, with a payout ratio of 89.29%.

American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) by 54.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,731,366 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 608,470 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 3.04% of First Busey worth $37,398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BUSE. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in First Busey by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 41,443 shares of the bank's stock valued at $977,000 after purchasing an additional 2,493 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in First Busey by 822.7% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its stake in First Busey by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 156,570 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,691,000 after purchasing an additional 21,501 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC increased its stake in First Busey by 114.5% in the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 31,104 shares of the bank's stock valued at $733,000 after purchasing an additional 16,604 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in First Busey by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 7,396 shares of the bank's stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 690 shares during the period. 56.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on First Busey from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Hovde Group started coverage on First Busey in a research report on Monday, June 30th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on First Busey from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen raised First Busey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on First Busey in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $27.17.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of First Busey stock traded down $0.18 on Monday, reaching $23.99. 117,219 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 522,106. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company's 50-day moving average is $23.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.50. The firm has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44 and a beta of 0.81. First Busey Corporation has a 1-year low of $18.40 and a 1-year high of $28.30.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $192.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $193.91 million. First Busey had a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 9.48%. As a group, research analysts expect that First Busey Corporation will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 18th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. First Busey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Busey

In related news, Director Karen M. Jensen acquired 2,500 shares of First Busey stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $23.25 per share, with a total value of $58,125.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 83,568 shares in the company, valued at $1,942,956. The trade was a 3.08% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Scott A. Phillips bought 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $25.25 per share, with a total value of $25,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,250. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 8,950 shares of company stock valued at $203,163. Corporate insiders own 3.85% of the company's stock.

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.