Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC Takes Position in First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Key Points

• Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC has acquired a new position in First Busey Corporation worth approximately $6.53 million, owning 302,289 shares as of the latest SEC filing.
• Several large investors have also recently adjusted their stakes in First Busey, with institutional investors owning 56.49% of the company’s stock.
• First Busey announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, representing an annualized yield of 4.1%, and has a consensus target price of $27.33 from analysts.

Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC bought a new stake in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 302,289 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $6,529,000. Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC owned approximately 0.53% of First Busey as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BUSE. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of First Busey by 64.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 49,724 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 19,431 shares during the last quarter. EJF Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Busey during the 1st quarter valued at $4,345,000. Curi RMB Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Busey during the 1st quarter valued at $7,560,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Busey by 57.8% during the 1st quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 593,076 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,810,000 after purchasing an additional 217,331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Busey by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 198,945 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,297,000 after purchasing an additional 28,605 shares during the last quarter. 56.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Scott A. Phillips purchased 1,000 shares of the business'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 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Karen M. Jensen purchased 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $23.25 per share, for a total transaction of $58,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 83,568 shares in the company, valued at $1,942,956. This trade represents a 3.08% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Busey Stock Performance

BUSE traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $24.68. 188,849 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 517,998. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $23.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. First Busey Corporation has a 1-year low of $18.40 and a 1-year high of $28.30.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts predict that First Busey Corporation will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 18th. First Busey's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BUSE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Hovde Group initiated coverage on First Busey in a report on Monday, June 30th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $25.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded First Busey from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler started coverage on First Busey in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $30.00 target price on the stock. DA Davidson raised their target price on First Busey from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $28.00 target price (up previously from $27.00) on shares of First Busey in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.33.

First Busey Company 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.