First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH) Short Interest Update

First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH) was the target of a large decline in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 200,386 shares, a decline of 32.2% from the December 15th total of 295,463 shares. Currently, 0.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 107,104 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days. Based on an average trading volume of 107,104 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.9 days. Currently, 0.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Mid Bancshares

In related news, CEO Clay M. Dean sold 1,099 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.69, for a total value of $46,916.31. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 9,624 shares in the company, valued at $410,848.56. This represents a 10.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 7.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Mid Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FMBH. Cozad Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Mid Bancshares during the second quarter valued at approximately $3,842,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 256.9% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 105,648 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,687,000 after purchasing an additional 76,050 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 609.7% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 86,292 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,235,000 after purchasing an additional 74,133 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 63.3% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 161,024 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,100,000 after purchasing an additional 62,404 shares during the period. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 421.7% in the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 71,260 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,699,000 after purchasing an additional 57,600 shares during the period. 47.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on FMBH. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of First Mid Bancshares in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on First Mid Bancshares from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of First Mid Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Mid Bancshares presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.80.

First Mid Bancshares Price Performance

First Mid Bancshares stock traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $41.51. 134,522 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 91,994. First Mid Bancshares has a 12-month low of $27.58 and a 12-month high of $42.85. The company has a market capitalization of $996.24 million, a P/E ratio of 11.37 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The bank reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $89.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.60 million. First Mid Bancshares had a return on equity of 10.27% and a net margin of 18.77%. Analysts forecast that First Mid Bancshares will post 3.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Mid Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 14th. First Mid Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.40%.

First Mid Bancshares Company Profile

First Mid Bancshares, Inc (NASDAQ: FMBH), headquartered in Mattoon, Illinois, is a financial services holding company that offers a comprehensive suite of banking products and services through its main subsidiary, First Mid Bank & Trust. The company’s primary business activities include commercial and retail banking, mortgage origination and servicing, wealth management and trust administration, as well as treasury and cash management solutions.

Through its branch network, First Mid provides consumer deposit products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit and online banking services.