First Mid Bancshares (NASDAQ:FMBH) Trading 4.9% Higher – Still a Buy?

First Mid Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FMBH)’s stock price traded up 4.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $40.08 and last traded at $39.87. 3,448 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 57,991 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FMBH has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson lowered First Mid Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $44.00 to $47.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of First Mid Bancshares from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens downgraded shares of First Mid Bancshares from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on First Mid Bancshares from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, First Mid Bancshares presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $42.50.

First Mid Bancshares Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $40.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $906.26 million, a PE ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 0.91.

First Mid Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.53%. First Mid Bancshares’s payout ratio is 29.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Mid Bancshares

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of FMBH. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in First Mid Bancshares by 23.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 340,343 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,190,000 after purchasing an additional 65,314 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of First Mid Bancshares by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 778,135 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,584,000 after buying an additional 36,769 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in First Mid Bancshares by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 387,926 shares of the bank’s stock worth $15,094,000 after acquiring an additional 26,560 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in First Mid Bancshares by 327.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 34,347 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,337,000 after acquiring an additional 26,315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in First Mid Bancshares in the third quarter valued at $869,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.57% of the company’s stock.

About First Mid Bancshares

First Mid Bancshares, Inc, a financial holding company, provides community banking products and services to commercial, retail, and agricultural customers in the United States. It accepts various deposit products, such as demand deposits, savings accounts, money market deposits, and time deposits. The company’s loan products include commercial real estate, commercial and industrial, agricultural and agricultural real estate, residential real estate, and consumer loans, as well as construction and land development, 1-4 family residential properties, and multifamily residential properties loans; and other loans comprising loans to municipalities to support community projects, such as infrastructure improvements or equipment purchases.