Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Given New $39.00 Price Target at DA Davidson

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) had its target price hoisted by equities researchers at DA Davidson from $35.00 to $39.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. DA Davidson‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 22.20% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on BFST. Stephens increased their target price on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Business First Bancshares from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Hovde Group increased their target price on Business First Bancshares from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.75.

Business First Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of BFST traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $31.92. The stock had a trading volume of 41,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 204,055. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 11.33 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.21. Business First Bancshares has a 12 month low of $23.55 and a 12 month high of $32.53.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.05. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 17.07%. The business had revenue of $93.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $93.25 million. Analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares will post 3.00 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Keith Mansfield sold 4,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.08, for a total transaction of $134,736.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,139 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,474,619.12. This represents a 5.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Saundra Strong sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.98, for a total transaction of $31,980.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $155,998.44. This trade represents a 17.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 43,275 shares of company stock valued at $1,371,575 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 5.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BFST. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 7.2% during the third quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 10,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $303,000 after buying an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in Business First Bancshares during the third quarter worth $595,000. Steel Grove Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at $219,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at $320,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 454.4% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after buying an additional 6,284 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Key Business First Bancshares News

Here are the key news stories impacting Business First Bancshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Business First reported third-quarter core earnings of $0.79 per diluted share, exceeding the $0.74 analyst consensus and rising from $0.72 a year earlier. Core net income increased to $26.0 million, up $2.7 million from the linked quarter. Business First Q3 Earnings Top Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management outlined goals to reduce nonperforming loans to approximately 50 basis points and improve return on assets to 1.25%. Progress on credit quality and profitability could support investor confidence if achieved. Business First Targets Reducing NPLs and Improving ROA
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, or $0.60 annualized, representing a yield of roughly 1.9%. The payout provides ongoing shareholder support. Business First Declares Common Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported GAAP net income available to common shareholders was $23.2 million, or $0.71 per diluted share, while adjusted results excluded certain income and expenses. Investors may focus on the quality and sustainability of the earnings improvement.
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue of $93.0 million was slightly below the $93.25 million consensus estimate, limiting the strength of the earnings beat. Commentary from the earnings call and valuation analyses will likely determine whether BFST’s recent gains are fully justified. Is Business First Bancshares a Bargain or Fully Priced?
• Negative Sentiment: The need to lower nonperforming loans signals continued credit-quality risk. Until asset quality improves, investors may remain cautious despite the earnings beat and management’s profitability targets.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

Business First Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Through its principal banking subsidiary, b1BANK, the company provides financial services to businesses, professionals and individual customers.

b1BANK offers commercial and consumer deposit accounts, commercial and real estate lending, residential mortgage loans, treasury management and other traditional banking services. The bank also provides wealth management and related financial services designed to support business owners, institutions and retail customers.

Business First Bancshares was established in 2006 and has expanded its presence across Louisiana and into Texas.