First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH) Reaches New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• First Mid Bancshares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $49.74 after closing at $48.77 the previous day.
• Analysts are generally positive on the stock, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $49.50; Piper Sandler has the highest target at $55.
• The bank beat quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $1.14 EPS versus $0.95 expected, and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, equal to a 2.0% annual yield.

First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $49.74 and last traded at $49.79, with a volume of 14109 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.77.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on FMBH shares. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on First Mid Bancshares from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $55.00 target price (up from $52.00) on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of First Mid Bancshares from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $49.50.

First Mid Bancshares Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.09.

First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The bank reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.19. First Mid Bancshares had a net margin of 19.95% and a return on equity of 10.44%. The firm had revenue of $98.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $96.45 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that First Mid Bancshares, Inc. will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

First Mid Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. First Mid Bancshares's payout ratio is presently 25.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Mid Bancshares

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL raised its holdings in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 421.7% in the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 71,260 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,699,000 after buying an additional 57,600 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its holdings in First Mid Bancshares by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 122,504 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,778,000 after acquiring an additional 22,358 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in First Mid Bancshares in the first quarter worth about $762,000. Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in First Mid Bancshares by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 208,719 shares of the bank's stock valued at $8,140,000 after purchasing an additional 20,441 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 58.4% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 30,042 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,173,000 after buying an additional 11,072 shares during the period. 47.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About First Mid Bancshares

First Mid Bancshares, Inc NASDAQ: FMBH, headquartered in Mattoon, Illinois, is a financial services holding company that offers a comprehensive suite of banking products and services through its main subsidiary, First Mid Bank & Trust. The company's primary business activities include commercial and retail banking, mortgage origination and servicing, wealth management and trust administration, as well as treasury and cash management solutions.

Through its branch network, First Mid provides consumer deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit and online banking services.

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