Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $25.04, but opened at $25.94. Business First Bancshares shares last traded at $25.78, with a volume of 3,179 shares.

The company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.11. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 12.19% and a net margin of 15.90%. The company had revenue of $113.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $65.24 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Business First Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph Vernon Johnson sold 5,574 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.38, for a total value of $141,468.12. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 213,357 shares in the company, valued at $5,415,000.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Business First Bancshares news, EVP Saundra Strong sold 6,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.32, for a total transaction of $159,516.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,483. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Joseph Vernon Johnson sold 5,574 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.38, for a total value of $141,468.12. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 213,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,415,000.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,906 shares of company stock worth $377,392 over the last 90 days. 6.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Business First Bancshares

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning purchased a new position in Business First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $476,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 26.1% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $383,000 after buying an additional 3,083 shares during the period. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp boosted its position in Business First Bancshares by 1,380.0% during the second quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp now owns 370,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,051,000 after acquiring an additional 345,000 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Business First Bancshares by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 62,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,353,000 after acquiring an additional 7,247 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $333,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Business First Bancshares Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $657.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.86 and a beta of 0.97.

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.