Kings Path Partners LLC Purchases 19,770 Shares of Business First Bancshares, Inc. $BFST

Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new position in Business First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:BFST) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 19,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $595,000. Kings Path Partners LLC owned about 0.06% of Business First Bancshares at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the second quarter valued at $83,985,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in Business First Bancshares during the second quarter worth approximately $33,491,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at $13,853,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Business First Bancshares in the second quarter valued at about $13,276,000. Finally, Ranger Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Business First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $8,743,000. 47.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Business First Bancshares Price Performance

NASDAQ:BFST opened at $31.36 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a 50-day moving average of $31.10 and a 200-day moving average of $29.91. Business First Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.08 and a 52 week high of $32.53. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.70 and a beta of 0.78.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. Business First Bancshares had a net margin of 17.07% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The business had revenue of $91.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.31 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Business First Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.00 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BFST shares. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Business First Bancshares from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Stephens lifted their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Hovde Group boosted their price objective on Business First Bancshares from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, Business First Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.75.

Insider Activity at Business First Bancshares

In other news, EVP Donald Chad Carter sold 1,875 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.64, for a total value of $59,325.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 12,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $399,992.88. This represents a 12.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Saundra Strong sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.98, for a total value of $31,980.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 4,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $155,998.44. This represents a 17.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 63,275 shares of company stock valued at $2,007,675. Corporate insiders own 5.67% of the company’s stock.

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

Business First Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Through its principal banking subsidiary, b1BANK, the company provides financial services to businesses, professionals and individual customers.

b1BANK offers commercial and consumer deposit accounts, commercial and real estate lending, residential mortgage loans, treasury management and other traditional banking services. The bank also provides wealth management and related financial services designed to support business owners, institutions and retail customers.

Business First Bancshares was established in 2006 and has expanded its presence across Louisiana and into Texas.