Jupiter Topco LLC Takes $33.49 Million Position in Business First Bancshares, Inc. $BFST

Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,089,827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,491,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BFST. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Business First Bancshares by 15,600.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,099 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,092 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 389.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,669 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 2,124 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188 shares during the period. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BFST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Stephens lifted their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their target price on Business First Bancshares from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $34.75.

Insider Transactions at Business First Bancshares

In other news, EVP Donald Chad Carter sold 1,875 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.64, for a total transaction of $59,325.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $399,992.88. This represents a 12.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Keith Mansfield sold 4,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.08, for a total value of $134,736.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,139 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,474,619.12. This represents a 5.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 78,275 shares of company stock valued at $2,435,775 over the last quarter. 5.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Business First Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ BFST opened at $31.21 on Friday. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.56 and a 52-week high of $32.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.07 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $31.08 and a 200-day moving average of $28.97.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $91.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $91.31 million. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 11.03%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Saturday, August 15th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.28%.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

Business First Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Business First Bank, a regional community bank headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals and individual consumers. Business First Bancshares operates under a community-focused model, emphasizing personalized service, local decision-making and relationship banking.

The company’s primary business activities include commercial lending, treasury and cash management, and deposit services.