Business First Bancshares (BFST) Projected to Post Earnings on Thursday

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) will likely be announcing its Q4 2025 results after the market closes on Thursday, January 22nd. Analysts expect Business First Bancshares to post earnings of $0.72 per share and revenue of $81.4120 million for the quarter. Parties may visit the the company’s upcoming Q4 2025 earning results page for the latest details on the call scheduled for Thursday, January 22, 2026 at 5:00 PM ET.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $80.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $80.50 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.08% and a net margin of 15.94%. On average, analysts expect Business First Bancshares to post $3 EPS for the current fiscal year and $3 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Business First Bancshares Stock Up 1.6%

Business First Bancshares stock opened at $26.60 on Thursday. Business First Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $20.07 and a fifty-two week high of $28.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $787.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.27 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $26.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Business First Bancshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, November 30th. Investors of record on Saturday, November 15th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from Business First Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. Business First Bancshares’s payout ratio is presently 23.17%.

Business First Bancshares announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 28th that allows the company to repurchase $30.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Greg Robertson sold 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total transaction of $36,974.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 67,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,791,522.35. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rick D. Day bought 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $24.21 per share, for a total transaction of $38,736.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 265,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,437,075.85. The trade was a 0.61% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 5.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Business First Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Business First Bancshares by 1.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,591,098 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,566,000 after purchasing an additional 17,690 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Business First Bancshares by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,024,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,183,000 after buying an additional 36,973 shares during the last quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp grew its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp now owns 280,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,902,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 230,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,445,000 after buying an additional 7,917 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 187,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,421,000 after acquiring an additional 7,667 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BFST. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Business First Bancshares from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.50.

About Business First Bancshares

Business First Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Business First Bank, a regional community bank headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals and individual consumers. Business First Bancshares operates under a community-focused model, emphasizing personalized service, local decision-making and relationship banking.

The company’s primary business activities include commercial lending, treasury and cash management, and deposit services.