Hsbc Holdings PLC Takes $1.27 Million Position in Business First Bancshares, Inc. $BFST

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired 41,303 shares of Business First Bancshares, valued at approximately $1.27 million, while institutional investors collectively owned 47.35% of the company.
• Analysts maintained a positive outlook, with five Buy ratings and a consensus price target of $34.75. The company also exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.71 in EPS versus the $0.70 estimate.
• BFST shares opened at $31.02 and recently traded down 0.6%. Business First Bancshares paid a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, equivalent to a 1.9% annualized yield.

Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 41,303 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,271,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.13% of Business First Bancshares as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BFST. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Business First Bancshares in the second quarter worth about $301,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Business First Bancshares in the second quarter worth about $726,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $13,276,000. Finally, Womack Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,348,000. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Hovde Group increased their target price on Business First Bancshares from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Business First Bancshares from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Stephens boosted their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Business First Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $34.75.

Business First Bancshares Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of BFST opened at $31.02 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $31.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.00 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1-year low of $22.56 and a 1-year high of $32.53.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $91.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $91.31 million. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 11.03%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.02 EPS for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Business First Bancshares's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.28%.

Insider Transactions at Business First Bancshares

In other Business First Bancshares news, COO Keith Mansfield sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.08, for a total value of $134,736.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 77,139 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,474,619.12. This represents a 5.16% 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 this link. Also, Director Joseph Vernon Johnson sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.75, for a total value of $317,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 174,073 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,526,817.75. This represents a 5.43% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 78,275 shares of company stock worth $2,435,775. 5.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Business First Bancshares

Business First Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Business First Bank, a regional community bank headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals and individual consumers. Business First Bancshares operates under a community-focused model, emphasizing personalized service, local decision-making and relationship banking.

The company’s primary business activities include commercial lending, treasury and cash management, and deposit services.

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