First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE) Shares Purchased by Two Sigma Investments LP

Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its stake in shares of First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) by 46.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 193,473 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 61,400 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP owned about 0.34% of First Busey worth $4,560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Emerald Advisers LLC purchased a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter worth $9,115,000. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in First Busey by 121.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 565,001 shares of the bank's stock worth $13,317,000 after purchasing an additional 309,301 shares in the last quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in First Busey during the fourth quarter worth about $5,498,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust acquired a new stake in First Busey in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,850,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in First Busey by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 671,402 shares of the bank's stock valued at $15,825,000 after purchasing an additional 189,115 shares in the last quarter. 56.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BUSE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of First Busey in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of First Busey in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. 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, Raymond James decreased their price objective on First Busey from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $27.80.

Insider Activity at First Busey

In related news, Director Karen M. Jensen bought 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $21.70 per share, for a total transaction of $119,350.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 72,068 shares in the company, valued at $1,563,875.60. This represents a 8.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stanley J. Bradshaw purchased 1,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $21.70 per share, with a total value of $36,890.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 482,143 shares in the company, valued at $10,462,503.10. This trade represents a 0.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders purchased 10,375 shares of company stock worth $225,250. Corporate insiders own 3.85% of the company's stock.

First Busey Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of BUSE traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $22.18. The company had a trading volume of 605,826 shares, compared to its average volume of 366,764. First Busey Co. has a fifty-two week low of $18.40 and a fifty-two week high of $28.97. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.16. The stock has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $140.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.15 million. First Busey had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 17.14%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Busey Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 18th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.51%. First Busey's dividend payout ratio is currently 93.46%.

First Busey Profile

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.