First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.04 EPS

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by ($0.04), FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $194.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $195.77 million. First Busey had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 21.00%.

First Busey Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of BUSE stock traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $30.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 797,485 shares, compared to its average volume of 712,792. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.79. First Busey has a 52 week low of $22.12 and a 52 week high of $31.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $2.49 billion, a PE ratio of 12.47 and a beta of 0.75.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 23rd. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio is 42.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BUSE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on First Busey from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of First Busey in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on First Busey from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research cut First Busey from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price objective on First Busey from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael Cassens sold 1,441 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.12, for a total transaction of $41,961.92. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 128,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,743,987.52. This represents a 1.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 4,323 shares of company stock worth $130,627. 3.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

First Busey Company Profile

First Busey Corporation is a financial holding company headquartered in Champaign, Illinois. Through its banking and wealth management businesses, the company serves individuals, families, businesses and institutions with a range of financial products and services.

Its principal banking subsidiary, Busey Bank, provides consumer and commercial checking and savings accounts, loans, mortgages, treasury management and other deposit and lending services. First Busey also offers investment management, trust, retirement planning, financial planning and brokerage services through its wealth management operations.

First Busey traces its banking roots to 1868 and primarily serves customers in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Florida, with additional markets following its combination with CrossFirst Bankshares.