Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Short Interest Up 74.8% in August

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 255,700 shares, a growth of 74.8% from the July 31st total of 146,300 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 70,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days.

Business First Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BFST traded up $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $24.42. 42,679 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 58,480. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.81. 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 $622.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.61 and a beta of 0.98. Business First Bancshares has a 1-year low of $17.88 and a 1-year high of $26.68.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $112.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.16 million. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 15.90% and a return on equity of 12.19%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Business First Bancshares will post 2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is 22.05%.

Insider Activity at Business First Bancshares

In other Business First Bancshares news, insider Warren Mcdonald sold 1,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.71, for a total transaction of $39,387.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 20,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $529,497.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Business First Bancshares news, insider Warren Mcdonald sold 1,532 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.71, for a total value of $39,387.72. Following the sale, the insider now owns 20,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $529,497.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Joseph Vernon Johnson sold 5,574 shares of Business First Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 213,357 shares in the company, valued at $5,415,000.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,406 shares of company stock worth $340,372. 6.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFST. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $106,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Business First Bancshares during the second quarter worth $116,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Business First Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $216,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Business First Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at $225,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 75.8% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,000 after purchasing an additional 5,004 shares in the last quarter. 47.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Hovde Group increased their price target on shares of Business First Bancshares from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.67.

About Business First Bancshares

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.