Geode Capital Management LLC Purchases 46,492 Shares of Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST)

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Free Report) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 607,810 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 46,492 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.06% of Business First Bancshares worth $15,624,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 3,582 shares of the company's stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $111,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $245,000. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $294,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC bought a new position in Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $304,000. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Business First Bancshares

In related news, Director Rick D. Day purchased 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $25.46 per share, with a total value of $38,190.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 264,285 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,728,696.10. This trade represents a 0.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 6.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Business First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BFST traded down $0.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $22.79. The stock had a trading volume of 54,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 87,588. The company's 50-day moving average price is $24.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.89. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $18.97 and a fifty-two week high of $30.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market capitalization of $673.98 million, a P/E ratio of 10.07 and a beta of 0.75.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $79.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.54 million. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 14.19% and a return on equity of 11.88%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Hovde Group raised Business First Bancshares from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $31.50 to $33.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th.

About Business First Bancshares

Business First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for b1BANK that provides various banking products and services in Louisiana and Texas. It offers various deposit products and services, including checking, demand, money market, time, and savings accounts; and certificates of deposits, remote deposit capture, and direct deposit services.