Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) saw a large decrease in short interest in April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 182,500 shares, a decrease of 5.4% from the April 15th total of 193,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 50,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Business First Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ BFST traded up $0.07 on Thursday, reaching $21.35. The stock had a trading volume of 72,033 shares, compared to its average volume of 51,359. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $21.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.89. Business First Bancshares has a 1-year low of $14.15 and a 1-year high of $25.57. The company has a market cap of $544.10 million, a P/E ratio of 8.39 and a beta of 0.95.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.07). Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.08% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The firm had revenue of $60.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $61.93 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares will post 2.1 EPS for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Business First Bancshares's dividend payout ratio is 22.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Business First Bancshares from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $23.33.

Insider Transactions at Business First Bancshares

In related news, Director Rick D. Day acquired 1,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.30 per share, for a total transaction of $36,540.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 262,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,334,535.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Warren Mcdonald sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.37, for a total transaction of $156,590.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 24,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $543,725.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rick D. Day acquired 1,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.30 per share, for a total transaction of $36,540.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 262,785 shares in the company, valued at $5,334,535.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 6.45% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $216,000. KG&L Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $218,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $225,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 75.8% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,608 shares of the company's stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 5,004 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $326,000. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

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.

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