First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $29.60.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of First Busey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of First Busey from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of First Busey from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of First Busey from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE opened at $29.69 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $28.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. First Busey has a 52 week low of $21.63 and a 52 week high of $30.51. The stock has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.20 and a beta of 0.72.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The bank reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $197.17 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.15 million. First Busey had a return on equity of 10.19% and a net margin of 19.16%. On average, analysts expect that First Busey will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 24th. First Busey’s payout ratio is presently 46.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at First Busey

In other First Busey news, CAO Scott A. Phillips acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.90 per share, with a total value of $129,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $216,265. The trade was a 149.25% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in First Busey by 95.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,143 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 8,884 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of First Busey by 16.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 198,945 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,297,000 after acquiring an additional 28,605 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of First Busey by 64.1% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 49,724 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,074,000 after acquiring an additional 19,431 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in First Busey by 9.0% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 469,310 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $10,137,000 after acquiring an additional 38,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in First Busey by 78.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 222,048 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,796,000 after acquiring an additional 97,560 shares in the last quarter. 56.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Busey

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.