Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) saw a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 246,800 shares, a growth of 24.1% from the January 31st total of 198,900 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 107,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Business First Bancshares Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of Business First Bancshares stock opened at $25.07 on Friday. Business First Bancshares has a 12-month low of $18.97 and a 12-month high of $30.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market cap of $740.59 million, a PE ratio of 11.09 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50-day moving average of $26.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.18.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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, research analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, February 15th were issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on BFST shares. Raymond James raised shares of Business First Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $30.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Hovde Group raised shares of Business First Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $31.50 to $33.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Business First Bancshares

In related news, Director Rick D. Day acquired 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.46 per share, for a total transaction of $38,190.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 264,285 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,728,696.10. The trade was a 0.57 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 111.1% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 623,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,023,000 after purchasing an additional 328,189 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,618,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,599,000 after purchasing an additional 245,491 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 194.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 196,238 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,037,000 after purchasing an additional 129,677 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 538,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,837,000 after purchasing an additional 88,546 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 472,430 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,141,000 after purchasing an additional 88,230 shares in the last quarter. 47.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.