First Busey Corporation $BUSE Shares Sold by Vestor Capital LLC

Vestor Capital LLC reduced its stake in First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) by 88.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,375 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 18,808 shares during the quarter. Vestor Capital LLC’s holdings in First Busey were worth $60,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Savvy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in First Busey during the 4th quarter worth about $2,905,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in 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 valued at $74,510,000 after acquiring an additional 3,123,454 shares in the last quarter. Sunesis Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in First Busey during the fourth quarter worth about $3,732,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of First Busey in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,743,000. Finally, LSV Asset Management boosted its position in First Busey by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,384,661 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,941,000 after buying an additional 102,904 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.49% of the company’s stock.

First Busey Trading Down 1.3%

NASDAQ BUSE opened at $30.86 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.75 and a beta of 0.72. First Busey Corporation has a 52-week low of $21.63 and a 52-week high of $31.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $28.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.84.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 21.00%.The company had revenue of $194.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.59 million. Equities research analysts expect that First Busey Corporation will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

First Busey Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 24th were issued a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 24th. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.98%.

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 that occurred 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 completion of the acquisition, the chief accounting officer directly owned 8,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,265. The trade was a 149.25% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BUSE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of First Busey from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on First Busey from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of First Busey from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on shares of First Busey from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of First Busey from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.00.

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.