Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Sells 65,986 Shares of First Busey Corporation $BUSE

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL decreased its holdings in shares of First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) by 69.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,500 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 65,986 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings in First Busey were worth $720,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BUSE. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of First Busey by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,746,996 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $184,301,000 after buying an additional 611,090 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of First Busey by 4.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,067,210 shares of the bank’s stock worth $128,046,000 after acquiring an additional 194,343 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of First Busey by 36,664.6% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,131,973 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,510,000 after acquiring an additional 3,123,454 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of First Busey by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,384,661 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,941,000 after acquiring an additional 102,904 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in First Busey by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,314,576 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,274,000 after acquiring an additional 145,681 shares in the last quarter. 56.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE stock opened at $30.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $28.66 and a 200-day moving average of $26.72. The company has a market cap of $2.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.44 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. First Busey Corporation has a one year low of $21.63 and a one year high of $30.51.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The bank reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.06. First Busey had a net margin of 19.16% and a return on equity of 10.19%. The company had revenue of $194.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.59 million. Equities research analysts forecast that First Busey Corporation will post 2.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 24th will be paid a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 24th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on BUSE shares. Stephens lifted their price target on First Busey from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research raised First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered First Busey from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded First Busey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on First Busey from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Busey currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Scott A. Phillips bought 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.90 per share, with a total value of $129,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,350 shares in the company, valued at $216,265. This represents a 149.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.77% of the company’s stock.

First Busey Profile

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.