Kings Path Partners LLC reduced its holdings in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Free Report) by 38.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,770 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,450 shares during the period. Kings Path Partners LLC owned about 0.07% of Business First Bancshares worth $481,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BFST. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 106.7% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,052 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at $85,000. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in Business First Bancshares by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 3,582 shares of the company's stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Business First Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at $94,000. 47.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Activity
In related news, Director Rick D. Day acquired 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $25.46 per share, with a total value of $38,190.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 264,285 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,728,696.10. This trade represents a 0.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Greg Robertson sold 1,086 shares of Business First Bancshares stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.72, for a total value of $25,759.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 69,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,642,254.20. This trade represents a 1.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.68% of the company's stock.
Business First Bancshares Price Performance
Shares of Business First Bancshares stock traded up $0.24 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $23.74. The stock had a trading volume of 15,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 90,916. The firm has a market cap of $704.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.50 and a beta of 0.81. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.97 and a 12 month high of $30.30. The business's 50-day moving average is $23.41 and its 200 day moving average is $25.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.
Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.
Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Business First Bancshares's payout ratio is 23.05%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research firms have recently commented on BFST. Stephens lowered their target price on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Raymond James cut their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on BFST
Business First Bancshares Company Profile
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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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