Bank First Co. (NASDAQ:BFC) Short Interest Update

Bank First Co. (NASDAQ:BFC) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 198,500 shares, an increase of 11.4% from the August 15th total of 178,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 27,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 7.4 days.

Institutional Trading of Bank First

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BFC. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Bank First by 61.4% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 6,513 shares of the company’s stock valued at $538,000 after purchasing an additional 2,478 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Bank First by 30.7% during the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 5,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $435,000 after acquiring an additional 1,237 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Bank First by 158.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,039,000 after acquiring an additional 7,703 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Bank First by 167.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 37,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,128,000 after acquiring an additional 23,705 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Bank First by 65,700.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. 29.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bank First Stock Performance

BFC opened at $92.42 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. The business’s 50 day moving average is $88.94 and its 200-day moving average is $84.05. The stock has a market cap of $931.69 million, a PE ratio of 12.00 and a beta of 0.31. Bank First has a twelve month low of $70.00 and a twelve month high of $96.00.

Bank First (NASDAQ:BFC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.13. Bank First had a return on equity of 10.07% and a net margin of 32.18%. The firm had revenue of $55.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.70 million. On average, analysts predict that Bank First will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank First Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 25th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 25th. This is a positive change from Bank First’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Bank First’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Bank First from $84.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th.

About Bank First

Bank First Corporation operates as a holding company for Bank First, N.A. that provides consumer and commercial financial services to businesses, professionals, consumers, associations, individuals, and governmental authorities in Wisconsin. It offers checking, savings, money market, cash management, retirement, and health savings accounts; other time deposits; certificates of deposit; and residential mortgage products.