First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) Earns Hold Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ – Get Rating) in a research note released on Thursday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

First Business Financial Services Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FBIZ traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $30.65. The company had a trading volume of 69,661 shares, compared to its average volume of 24,568. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $34.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $255.93 million, a P/E ratio of 6.47 and a beta of 0.72. First Business Financial Services has a one year low of $29.61 and a one year high of $39.88.

First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $34.43 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.35 million. First Business Financial Services had a net margin of 27.09% and a return on equity of 17.01%. Equities research analysts expect that First Business Financial Services will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Business Financial Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 16th. Investors of record on Monday, February 6th were paid a $0.228 dividend. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 3rd. This is a positive change from First Business Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. First Business Financial Services’s payout ratio is 19.20%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Business Financial Services

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Banc Funds Co. LLC boosted its holdings in First Business Financial Services by 11.4% in the second quarter. Banc Funds Co. LLC now owns 573,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,883,000 after purchasing an additional 58,500 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in First Business Financial Services by 2,169.3% in the second quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 44,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 42,431 shares during the period. First Business Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in First Business Financial Services by 1.6% in the third quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. now owns 360,523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,648,000 after purchasing an additional 5,560 shares during the period. John W. Rosenthal Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in First Business Financial Services in the third quarter worth $1,616,000. Finally, Uncommon Cents Investing LLC boosted its holdings in First Business Financial Services by 2.6% in the third quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC now owns 35,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,145,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.11% of the company’s stock.

About First Business Financial Services

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First Business Financial Services, Inc operates as a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of commercial banking services. It offers treasury and investment management, commercial lending, equipment finance, retirement plans, trust and estate administration, private banking and asset-based lending.