8,831 Shares in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) Bought by KG&L Capital Management LLC

KG&L Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 8,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 75.8% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,608 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 5,004 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Business First Bancshares by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 66,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,475,000 after buying an additional 4,900 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Business First Bancshares by 5.6% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 201,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,482,000 after acquiring an additional 11,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 2,249.7% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 22,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $499,000 after acquiring an additional 21,395 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Business First Bancshares

In related news, insider Warren Mcdonald sold 1,500 shares of Business First Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.68, for a total value of $37,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $471,264.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Joseph Vernon Johnson sold 3,980 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.63, for a total transaction of $105,987.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 203,077 shares in the company, valued at $5,407,940.51. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Warren Mcdonald sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.68, for a total transaction of $37,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $471,264.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Hovde Group lifted their target price on shares of Business First Bancshares from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th.

Business First Bancshares Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ BFST opened at $26.01 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $25.22 and its 200-day moving average is $23.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $663.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.97. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a one year low of $18.97 and a one year high of $27.72.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.11. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 14.92% and a return on equity of 11.81%. The firm had revenue of $113.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $65.24 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.26 EPS for the current year.

Business First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, November 30th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Business First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.14%.

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.