First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE) Director Stanley J. Bradshaw Purchases 1,700 Shares

First Busey Co. (NASDAQ:BUSE) Director Stanley J. Bradshaw bought 1,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $21.70 per share, with a total value of $36,890.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 482,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,462,503.10. This represents a 0.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

First Busey Stock Up 2.5 %

BUSE stock traded up $0.54 on Friday, reaching $22.08. 225,204 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 426,997. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.01. The company has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.84. First Busey Co. has a one year low of $21.20 and a one year high of $28.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.01. First Busey had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 17.14%. Research analysts anticipate that First Busey Co. will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

First Busey Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from First Busey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.53%. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on First Busey from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of First Busey in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 price objective (down previously from $34.00) on shares of First Busey in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of First Busey in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Busey

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BUSE. Emerald Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in First Busey during the 4th quarter valued at $9,115,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Busey by 121.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 565,001 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,317,000 after buying an additional 309,301 shares during the last quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in First Busey in the 4th quarter worth about $5,498,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust purchased a new position in First Busey in the 4th quarter worth about $4,850,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in First Busey by 39.2% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 671,402 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $15,825,000 after acquiring an additional 189,115 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.49% of the company’s stock.

First Busey Company Profile

First Busey Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Busey Bank that engages in the provision of retail and commercial banking products and services to individual, corporate, institutional, and governmental customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Banking, Wealth Management, and FirsTech.