First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 31,400 shares, a growth of 57.0% from the June 15th total of 20,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 13,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days. Approximately 0.4% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised First Business Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on shares of First Business Financial Services in a research report on Monday, March 18th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William Kent Lorenz sold 1,345 shares of First Business Financial Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.51, for a total transaction of $46,415.95. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,440.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Business Financial Services

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vista Investment Management grew its stake in First Business Financial Services by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 52,410 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,102,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in First Business Financial Services by 2.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 18,946 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $711,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in First Business Financial Services by 28.1% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 938 shares during the period. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC grew its stake in First Business Financial Services by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC now owns 36,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,454,000 after acquiring an additional 1,485 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of First Business Financial Services by 70.7% during the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 3,866 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,000 after buying an additional 1,601 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.07% of the company’s stock.

First Business Financial Services Price Performance

Shares of FBIZ opened at $38.63 on Monday. First Business Financial Services has a 1 year low of $28.35 and a 1 year high of $41.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $320.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.90 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50-day moving average of $34.76 and a 200-day moving average of $35.41.

First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $62.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.47 million. First Business Financial Services had a return on equity of 13.51% and a net margin of 15.48%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that First Business Financial Services will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current year.

First Business Financial Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 9th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 8th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. First Business Financial Services’s payout ratio is currently 23.04%.

About First Business Financial Services

First Business Financial Services, Inc operates as the bank holding company for First Business Bank that provides commercial banking products and services for small and medium-sized businesses, business owners, executives, professionals, and high net worth individuals in Wisconsin, Kansas, and Missouri.