First Busey Corporation $BUSE Shares Acquired by Rhino Investment Partners Inc

Rhino Investment Partners Inc grew its stake in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) by 101.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 492,113 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 247,589 shares during the period. First Busey comprises 3.5% of Rhino Investment Partners Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Rhino Investment Partners Inc’s holdings in First Busey were worth $12,436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BUSE. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in First Busey by 95.9% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,143 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $392,000 after acquiring an additional 8,884 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Busey by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 198,945 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,297,000 after purchasing an additional 28,605 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of First Busey by 64.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 49,724 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,074,000 after purchasing an additional 19,431 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Busey by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 469,310 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,137,000 after purchasing an additional 38,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Busey by 78.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 222,048 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,796,000 after purchasing an additional 97,560 shares during the period. 56.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Busey

In related news, CAO Scott A. Phillips purchased 5,000 shares of First Busey stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.90 per share, for a total transaction of $129,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $216,265. This trade represents a 149.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 3.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

First Busey Price Performance

First Busey stock opened at $30.23 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.44 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $28.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. First Busey Corporation has a 1 year low of $21.63 and a 1 year high of $30.51.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $194.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.59 million. First Busey had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 10.19%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that First Busey Corporation will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 24th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. First Busey’s payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BUSE. Raymond James Financial increased their price target on shares of First Busey from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of First Busey from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research raised shares of First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Piper Sandler raised their target price on First Busey from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.75.

First Busey Profile

First Busey (NASDAQ: BUSE) is a bank holding company headquartered in Champaign, Illinois, with roots tracing back to the founding of Busey Bank in 1868. As a regional financial institution, it offers a broad spectrum of banking services to individuals, small businesses, and corporations. Its core activities include commercial lending, deposit-taking, and cash management, which are tailored to meet the needs of local communities across its operating footprint.

In addition to traditional banking operations, First Busey provides wealth management and trust services through its subsidiary aimed at high-net-worth clients and fiduciary accounts.