DA Davidson Brokers Boost Earnings Estimates for First Busey

First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE - Free Report) - Equities researchers at DA Davidson lifted their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of First Busey in a report released on Wednesday, February 26th. DA Davidson analyst J. Rulis now anticipates that the bank will post earnings per share of $0.54 for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $0.22. DA Davidson has a "Neutral" rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for First Busey's current full-year earnings is $2.61 per share. DA Davidson also issued estimates for First Busey's FY2025 earnings at $2.60 EPS.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. First Busey had a net margin of 17.14% and a return on equity of 8.94%.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of First Busey in a report on Monday, February 24th. Piper Sandler cut their price target 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $33.00 price objective (down previously from $34.00) on shares of First Busey in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, First Busey has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.00.

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First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BUSE traded down $1.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $22.85. 834,690 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 408,535. First Busey has a 52-week low of $21.59 and a 52-week high of $28.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $23.77 and a 200 day moving average of $25.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.60 and a beta of 0.87.

First Busey Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This is a positive change from First Busey's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.38%. First Busey's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.76%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Stanley J. Bradshaw acquired 1,838 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $23.75 per share, with a total value of $43,652.50. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 437,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,390,173.75. This represents a 0.42 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 7.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Busey

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BUSE. Stifel Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of First Busey during the third quarter valued at about $757,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in First Busey by 9.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 482,287 shares of the bank's stock valued at $12,549,000 after purchasing an additional 39,900 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in First Busey by 168.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 149,279 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,884,000 after purchasing an additional 93,733 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of First Busey by 1.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,295,804 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,723,000 after purchasing an additional 22,096 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of First Busey by 61.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 41,550 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 15,829 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.49% of the company's stock.

About First Busey

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.