Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST - Free Report) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 198,824 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 27,709 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.67% of Business First Bancshares worth $5,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 407,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,468,000 after buying an additional 27,023 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 158.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 46,792 shares of the company's stock worth $1,201,000 after purchasing an additional 28,663 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 5.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 523,626 shares of the company's stock worth $13,441,000 after purchasing an additional 24,992 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 194.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 196,238 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,037,000 after purchasing an additional 129,677 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 32.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 121,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,119,000 after purchasing an additional 29,989 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.35% of the company's stock.
Business First Bancshares Stock Performance
Shares of BFST stock traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $22.35. 11,973 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 85,411. The stock has a market capitalization of $660.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.87 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $18.97 and a 12-month high of $30.30. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $24.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.97.
Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.17. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 14.19% and a return on equity of 11.88%. On average, analysts forecast that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.
Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, February 15th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.51%. Business First Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.78%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, Director Rick D. Day purchased 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.46 per share, for a total transaction of $38,190.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 264,285 shares in the company, valued at $6,728,696.10. This represents a 0.57 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 6.45% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Hovde Group upgraded Business First Bancshares from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $31.50 to $33.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James upgraded Business First Bancshares from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $30.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on BFST
Business First Bancshares Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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