Millennium Management LLC Has $13.32 Million Stock Holdings in First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE)

Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE) by 121.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 565,001 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 309,301 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned 0.99% of First Busey worth $13,317,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BUSE. Emerald Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in First Busey in the 4th quarter valued at $9,115,000. Peregrine Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in First Busey during the fourth quarter worth $5,498,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust bought a new position in shares of First Busey in the fourth quarter valued at $4,850,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of First Busey by 39.2% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 671,402 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $15,825,000 after buying an additional 189,115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of First Busey by 1,181.6% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 170,340 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,015,000 after acquiring an additional 157,049 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.49% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at First Busey

In other news, Director Stanley J. Bradshaw bought 1,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $21.70 per share, with a total value of $36,890.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 482,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,462,503.10. The trade was a 0.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Busey Price Performance

BUSE stock opened at $21.61 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.38. 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 stock has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a PE ratio of 10.97 and a beta of 0.75. First Busey Co. has a one year low of $18.40 and a one year high of $28.97.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.04. First Busey had a net margin of 17.14% and a return on equity of 8.94%. The business had revenue of $140.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $140.15 million. On average, analysts predict that First Busey Co. will post 2.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 18th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.63%. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of First Busey in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler cut their target price on First Busey from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James lowered their price target on First Busey from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 price objective (down from $34.00) on shares of First Busey in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Busey from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Busey presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $27.80.

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.