Bank First National (NASDAQ:BFC) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Shares of Bank First National Corporation (NASDAQ:BFC) saw unusually-high trading volume on Thursday . 57,494 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 37% from the previous session’s volume of 91,240 shares.The stock last traded at $152.1050 and had previously closed at $151.04.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BFC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Bank First National from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Bank First National from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Hovde Group boosted their price objective on shares of Bank First National from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Zacks Research upgraded Bank First National from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Bank First National from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank First National currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $163.00.

Bank First National Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $143.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.62 and a beta of 0.41.

Bank First National (NASDAQ:BFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $65.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $65.25 million. Bank First National had a return on equity of 12.48% and a net margin of 27.70%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Bank First National Corporation will post 9.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank First National Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 23rd. This is a positive change from Bank First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Bank First National’s dividend payout ratio is 28.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank First National

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Annex Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank First National in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,111,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in Bank First National by 2,452,855.0% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 490,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,764,000 after buying an additional 490,571 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Bank First National by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 598,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,948,000 after acquiring an additional 10,052 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Bank First National by 182.0% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 15,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,087,000 after acquiring an additional 9,971 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Bank First National in the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,340,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 29.95% of the company’s stock.

Bank First National Company Profile

Bank First National Corporation (NASDAQ: BFC) is the bank holding company for Bank First National, a community bank headquartered in Princeton, Wisconsin. The company offers a comprehensive suite of financial services designed to meet the needs of individuals, families, small businesses and agricultural clients. Through its branch network and digital channels, Bank First National provides deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage financing and treasury management solutions.

The bank’s core deposit products include checking and savings accounts, money market funds and certificates of deposit, complemented by online and mobile banking platforms that enable customers to manage their finances remotely.