Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Short Interest Up 10.5% in June

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 181,900 shares, a growth of 10.5% from the June 15th total of 164,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 49,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Insider Transactions at Business First Bancshares

In related news, Director Rick D. Day purchased 1,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.30 per share, with a total value of $36,540.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 262,785 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,334,535.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Business First Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFST. Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $216,000. KG&L Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth about $218,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Business First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth about $225,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 5,004 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 5.6% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Business First Bancshares Trading Up 4.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BFST traded up $1.02 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $24.28. 50,848 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 51,088. Business First Bancshares has a 1-year low of $15.03 and a 1-year high of $25.57. The firm has a market cap of $619.14 million, a P/E ratio of 9.16 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.67.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $60.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.93 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 12.80% and a net margin of 17.08%. Equities analysts predict that Business First Bancshares will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th were issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.05%.

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.