First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) Shares Purchased by First Business Financial Services Inc.

First Business Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 365,912 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,194 shares during the quarter. First Business Financial Services makes up about 1.7% of First Business Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. First Business Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in First Business Financial Services were worth $16,682,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of FBIZ. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in First Business Financial Services in the 1st quarter valued at $60,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of First Business Financial Services in the 3rd quarter worth about $125,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in First Business Financial Services by 73.1% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $147,000 after purchasing an additional 1,659 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in First Business Financial Services in the second quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, ERn Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Business Financial Services during the third quarter worth approximately $210,000. 60.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at First Business Financial Services

In other news, CEO James Edward Hartlieb sold 6,344 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.15, for a total transaction of $273,743.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,162 shares in the company, valued at $1,215,190.30. This represents a 18.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Corey A. Chambas sold 40,000 shares of First Business Financial Services stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.81, for a total value of $1,952,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 112,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,503,327.50. This represents a 26.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on FBIZ. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on First Business Financial Services from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of First Business Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. DA Davidson raised shares of First Business Financial Services from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $51.00 price target (up previously from $48.00) on shares of First Business Financial Services in a report on Monday, July 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.00.

First Business Financial Services Price Performance

FBIZ opened at $49.93 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $44.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.32. First Business Financial Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.56 and a 52 week high of $51.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $414.42 million, a PE ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.09.

First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.04. First Business Financial Services had a return on equity of 13.70% and a net margin of 15.46%. The firm had revenue of $66.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that First Business Financial Services, Inc. will post 4.78 earnings per share for the current year.

First Business Financial Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. First Business Financial Services’s payout ratio is presently 21.46%.

About First Business Financial Services

First Business Financial Services, Inc operates as the bank holding company for First Business Bank that provides commercial banking products and services for small and medium-sized businesses, business owners, executives, professionals, and high net worth individuals in Wisconsin, Kansas, and Missouri.