LSV Asset Management Sells 38,700 Shares of First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE)

LSV Asset Management decreased its position in shares of First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,215,457 shares of the bank's stock after selling 38,700 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned about 2.14% of First Busey worth $28,648,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in First Busey by 1,173.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,439 shares of the bank's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,326 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of First Busey during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of First Busey by 161.1% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,697 shares of the bank's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in First Busey in the 4th quarter valued at about $245,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter valued at about $280,000. 56.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE stock traded up $0.28 during trading on Thursday, reaching $20.03. 178,884 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 503,279. The firm's 50-day moving average is $22.25 and its 200 day moving average is $24.02. The company has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 0.75. First Busey Co. has a 1 year low of $18.40 and a 1 year high of $28.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. First Busey had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 17.14%. Equities research analysts expect that First Busey Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 18th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. First Busey's payout ratio is 50.76%.

Insider Activity

In other First Busey news, Director Stanley J. Bradshaw acquired 1,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $21.70 per share, with a total value of $36,890.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 482,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,462,503.10. This trade represents a 0.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 7.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $33.00 target price (down previously from $34.00) on shares of First Busey in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of First Busey in a report on Monday, February 24th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of First Busey from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of First Busey from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of First Busey in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $27.80.

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.