First Busey Corporation $BUSE Shares Purchased by Deutsche Bank AG

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in First Busey Corporation by 52.9% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 24,307 shares, bringing its total ownership to 70,283 shares valued at approximately $1,518,000.
• Several other institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Dimensional Fund Advisors, also increased their positions in First Busey, with a combined 56.49% of the stock now held by hedge funds and institutional investors.
• First Busey recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 4.1%, and reported earnings of $0.63 per share, exceeding analyst expectations.

Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) by 52.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,283 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 24,307 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned approximately 0.12% of First Busey worth $1,518,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Busey by 822.7% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,707 shares of the bank's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,522 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position in First Busey by 507.5% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,786 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,492 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in First Busey during the first quarter valued at $43,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in First Busey by 56.4% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,251 shares of the bank's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in First Busey by 23.7% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,524 shares of the bank's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the period. 56.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Busey Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of First Busey stock traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $24.69. The stock had a trading volume of 456,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 468,505. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $23.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.53. First Busey Corporation has a 12-month low of $18.40 and a 12-month high of $28.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market cap of $2.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.04 and a beta of 0.81.

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

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 18th. First Busey's dividend payout ratio is currently 89.29%.

Insider Activity at First Busey

In related news, CFO Scott A. Phillips acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.25 per share, for a total transaction of $25,250.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $25,250. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Karen M. Jensen acquired 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $22.00 per share, for a total transaction of $88,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 76,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,673,496. The trade was a 5.55% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders bought 7,950 shares of company stock worth $181,163. Company insiders own 3.85% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BUSE shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of First Busey from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Hovde Group began coverage on shares of First Busey in a research note on Monday, June 30th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of First Busey from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Busey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of First Busey in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. They set an "overweight" rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Busey currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.17.

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.