First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

Separately, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of First Busey in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $25.75.

First Busey Price Performance

BUSE stock opened at $22.89 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 0.85. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.76. First Busey has a 52-week low of $16.26 and a 52-week high of $25.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Insider Activity at First Busey

In other news, Director Karen M. Jensen acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $22.98 per share, for a total transaction of $45,960.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 47,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,093,503.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Michael David Cassens sold 2,300 shares of First Busey stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.02, for a total transaction of $52,946.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 141,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,252,219.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Karen M. Jensen bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.98 per share, for a total transaction of $45,960.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 47,585 shares in the company, valued at $1,093,503.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders purchased 4,348 shares of company stock worth $93,953 and sold 6,900 shares worth $157,182. 7.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Busey

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BUSE. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in First Busey during the 3rd quarter valued at about $369,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in First Busey by 4.1% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 32,280 shares of the bank’s stock worth $620,000 after purchasing an additional 1,279 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in First Busey by 1.3% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 385,328 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,406,000 after purchasing an additional 5,025 shares during the period. Everhart Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in First Busey during the 3rd quarter valued at $218,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of First Busey by 40.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 15,819 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 4,566 shares during the period. 56.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About First Busey

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.