Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 164,600 shares, a growth of 7.2% from the May 31st total of 153,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 47,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Business First Bancshares Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of BFST traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $21.59. 44,744 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 50,932. 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 company has a market capitalization of $550.55 million, a P/E ratio of 8.50 and a beta of 0.98. Business First Bancshares has a 52 week low of $14.39 and a 52 week high of $25.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $20.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.85.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $60.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $61.93 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 12.80% and a net margin of 17.08%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Business First Bancshares

In other news, Director Rick D. Day purchased 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $20.30 per share, with a total value of $36,540.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 262,785 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,334,535.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 6.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BFST. Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at about $216,000. KG&L Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at about $218,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at about $225,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Business First Bancshares by 75.8% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 5,004 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.