Bridgeway Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Position in First Mid Bancshares, Inc. $FMBH

Key Points

• Bridgeway Capital Management LLC has increased its holdings in First Mid Bancshares by 16.2% in Q1, now owning approximately 0.52% of the company, valued at $4.31 million.
• Several hedge funds have also increased their stakes, with institutional investors now owning 47.57% of First Mid Bancshares.
• First Mid Bancshares recently announced a dividend increase to $0.25 per share, reflecting a 2.5% yield and marking an annualized dividend of $1.00.

Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH - Free Report) by 16.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 123,634 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 17,266 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC owned 0.52% of First Mid Bancshares worth $4,315,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in First Mid Bancshares by 256.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 105,648 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,687,000 after purchasing an additional 76,050 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in First Mid Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,868,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in First Mid Bancshares by 10.2% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 496,888 shares of the bank's stock valued at $17,341,000 after buying an additional 45,831 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. bought a new position in First Mid Bancshares in the 1st quarter worth about $667,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 402,826 shares of the bank's stock worth $14,832,000 after acquiring an additional 14,900 shares during the period. 47.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Mid Bancshares Stock Up 0.9%

FMBH stock traded up $0.36 during trading on Thursday, reaching $40.12. 43,667 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 64,702. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.61. First Mid Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.58 and a 12 month high of $43.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company has a market capitalization of $962.88 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 0.91.

First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.08. First Mid Bancshares had a net margin of 18.32% and a return on equity of 10.09%. The business had revenue of $88.23 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.42 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that First Mid Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Mid Bancshares Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. This is a positive change from First Mid Bancshares's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. First Mid Bancshares's payout ratio is 28.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on FMBH. Wall Street Zen raised First Mid Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on First Mid Bancshares from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of First Mid Bancshares from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.33.

Insider Transactions at First Mid Bancshares

In other First Mid Bancshares news, CEO Clay M. Dean sold 1,553 shares of First Mid Bancshares stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.64, for a total value of $58,454.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,229 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $422,659.56. The trade was a 12.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 7.70% of the company's stock.

First Mid Bancshares Company Profile

First Mid Bancshares, Inc, a financial holding company, provides community banking products and services to commercial, retail, and agricultural customers in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, such as demand deposits, savings accounts, money market deposits, and time deposits. The company's loan products include commercial real estate, commercial and industrial, agricultural and agricultural real estate, residential real estate, and consumer loans, as well as construction and land development, 1-4 family residential properties, and multifamily residential properties loans; and other loans comprising loans to municipalities to support community projects, such as infrastructure improvements or equipment purchases.