Bank First National Corporation (BFC) – What Are Investment Firms Saying About This Stock?

Shares of Bank First National Corporation (NASDAQ:BFC) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $163.00.

Several research analysts have weighed in on BFC shares. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Bank First National from $157.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Bank First National from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Bank First National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th.

Insider Activity at Bank First National

In related news, Director Todd Sprang purchased 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 28th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $148.37 per share, with a total value of $59,348.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 2,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,687.47. This trade represents a 19.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sistine Peter J. Van sold 1,848 shares of Bank First National stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.57, for a total transaction of $287,493.36. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,188,554.80. The trade was a 19.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 4.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank First National

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Bank First National in the second quarter worth $121,853,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Bank First National in the second quarter valued at about $6,689,000. Prairie Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Bank First National by 100.4% in the third quarter. Prairie Advisory LLC now owns 74,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,077,000 after purchasing an additional 37,300 shares during the period. Legacy Private Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Bank First National by 1,048.3% during the third quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 40,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,015,000 after buying an additional 36,900 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Bank First National by 21.2% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 159,678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,565,000 after buying an additional 27,953 shares in the last quarter. 29.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bank First National Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ BFC opened at $147.89 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 18.46 and a beta of 0.44. Bank First National has a 52 week low of $119.08 and a 52 week high of $159.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.47.

Bank First National (NASDAQ:BFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.60 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $65.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.80 million. Bank First National had a net margin of 27.38% and a return on equity of 12.89%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bank First National will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank First National Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 23rd will be paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 23rd. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is a boost from Bank First National’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Bank First National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.96%.

About Bank First National

Bank First National, operating as Bank First Corporation (NASDAQ:BFC), is the holding company for Bank First, a community bank headquartered in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The bank provides banking services to individuals, families, businesses and municipalities through locations across Wisconsin.

Its products and services include checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer loans, residential mortgages, commercial real estate and business lending, agricultural loans, treasury management and online and mobile banking.