Bank First Co. Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.35 (NASDAQ:BFC)

Bank First Co. (NASDAQ:BFC) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 16th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of 0.35 per share on Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 26th.

Bank First has raised its dividend by an average of 12.4% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 4 consecutive years. Bank First has a payout ratio of 23.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Bank First to earn $6.00 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 23.3%.

Bank First Stock Performance

Shares of BFC opened at $76.28 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $83.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.42. The company has a market cap of $773.48 million, a PE ratio of 9.91 and a beta of 0.27. Bank First has a 12-month low of $65.00 and a 12-month high of $92.50.

Bank First (NASDAQ:BFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 16th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $75.37 million during the quarter. Bank First had a return on equity of 10.16% and a net margin of 32.08%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bank First will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Bank First

In related news, Director Phillip R. Maples purchased 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $81.72 per share, with a total value of $53,118.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $162,050.76. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Mary Kay Bourbulas purchased 600 shares of Bank First stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $82.88 per share, with a total value of $49,728.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 7,003 shares in the company, valued at $580,408.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Phillip R. Maples bought 650 shares of Bank First stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $81.72 per share, for a total transaction of $53,118.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,983 shares in the company, valued at $162,050.76. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 5.73% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank First

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BFC. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. increased its position in Bank First by 24.8% during the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 3,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after buying an additional 652 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Bank First by 5.9% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 16,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,167,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Bank First by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 32,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,360,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Bank First by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 9,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 1,796 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in Bank First by 56.7% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 4,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 1,509 shares during the last quarter. 29.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Hovde Group cut shares of Bank First from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Bank First from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 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.