Verition Fund Management LLC Increases Stake in First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Verition Fund Management LLC increased its position in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) by 69.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 601,355 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 245,832 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC owned about 0.68% of First Busey worth $14,306,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,008,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in First Busey by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 174,244 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,145,000 after buying an additional 23,252 shares in the last quarter. Bayview Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in First Busey by 43.8% during the 4th quarter. Bayview Asset Management LLC now owns 71,920 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,711,000 after buying an additional 21,920 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust purchased a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter valued at about $113,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.49% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised First Busey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Stephens lifted their price target on First Busey from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on First Busey from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Scott A. Phillips bought 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was bought 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $216,265. This represents a 149.25% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE opened at $28.26 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $2.39 billion, a PE ratio of 12.56 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $26.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.62. First Busey Corporation has a 12-month low of $21.63 and a 12-month high of $29.10.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $197.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $197.15 million. First Busey had a return on equity of 10.19% and a net margin of 19.16%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that First Busey Corporation will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 24th were given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 24th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. First Busey’s payout ratio is presently 46.22%.

First Busey Company 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.