Martingale Asset Management L P Buys 68,889 Shares of First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Key Points

• Martingale Asset Management increased its stake in First Busey Corporation by 171.7% in the first quarter, owning 109,006 shares worth approximately $2.35 million.
• First Busey recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, reflecting a yield of 4.1% and a payout ratio of 89.29%.
• The bank reported earnings of $0.63 per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 9.48%.

Martingale Asset Management L P grew its position in shares of First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) by 171.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 109,006 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 68,889 shares during the quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P owned about 0.19% of First Busey worth $2,355,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted 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 acquiring an additional 1,522 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,492 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Busey during the first quarter valued at $43,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in First Busey by 56.4% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,251 shares of the bank's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in First Busey by 23.7% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,524 shares of the bank's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.49% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BUSE shares. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on shares of First Busey from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of First Busey from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Hovde Group started coverage on shares of First Busey in a report on Monday, June 30th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of First Busey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of First Busey from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Busey currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $27.17.

First Busey Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of BUSE traded down $0.26 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $23.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 265,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 464,438. The firm has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.35 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. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $23.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.50.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $192.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 predict that First Busey Corporation will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th were paid a $0.25 dividend. 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 payout ratio is presently 89.29%.

Insider Activity at First Busey

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

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.