Insider Selling: First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) Director Sells 750 Shares of Stock

First Busey Corporation (NASDAQ:BUSE) Director Michael David Cassens sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.61, for a total transaction of $19,957.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 139,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,712,707.03. This trade represents a 0.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Michael David Cassens also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, January 15th, Michael David Cassens sold 750 shares of First Busey stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.24, for a total transaction of $18,180.00.
• On Monday, December 15th, Michael David Cassens sold 750 shares of First Busey stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.37, for a total transaction of $19,027.50.

First Busey Stock Performance

Shares of BUSE traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $26.07. 136,167 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 636,841. First Busey Corporation has a 1-year low of $18.40 and a 1-year high of $27.65. The stock has a market cap of $2.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.22 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $25.06 and its 200 day moving average is $24.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91.

First Busey (NASDAQ:BUSE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The bank reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $201.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.70 million. First Busey had a return on equity of 9.59% and a net margin of 12.96%. Equities research analysts anticipate that First Busey Corporation will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Busey Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Friday, January 23rd were given a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from First Busey’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 23rd. First Busey’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BUSE. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of First Busey in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of First Busey in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of First Busey from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $26.00 target price (down previously from $28.00) on shares of First Busey in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of First Busey by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,746,996 shares of the bank’s stock worth $184,301,000 after purchasing an additional 611,090 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in First Busey by 0.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,078,833 shares of the bank’s stock worth $117,575,000 after purchasing an additional 33,430 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in shares of First Busey by 36,664.6% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of First Busey by 3.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,073,087 shares of the bank’s stock worth $47,448,000 after purchasing an additional 74,997 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management raised its position in First Busey by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,384,661 shares of the bank’s stock worth $32,941,000 after purchasing an additional 102,904 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.49% of the company’s stock.

First Busey Company 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.