Short Interest in First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) Decreases By 8.0%

First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 34,600 shares, a drop of 8.0% from the August 15th total of 37,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 0.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Transactions at First Business Financial Services

In other news, insider Jodi A. Chandler sold 6,604 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.83, for a total value of $210,205.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $619,093.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in shares of First Business Financial Services by 0.4% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 132,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,896,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in shares of First Business Financial Services by 99.3% during the second quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,490 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of First Business Financial Services by 12.3% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 38,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,140,000 after purchasing an additional 4,240 shares in the last quarter. Cutler Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of First Business Financial Services by 4.1% during the second quarter. Cutler Capital Management LLC now owns 151,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,465,000 after purchasing an additional 5,991 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vista Investment Management grew its position in shares of First Business Financial Services by 5.9% during the second quarter. Vista Investment Management now owns 52,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,540,000 after purchasing an additional 2,922 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.63% of the company’s stock.

First Business Financial Services Price Performance

NASDAQ:FBIZ traded down $0.41 on Tuesday, reaching $30.15. 12,922 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,855. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.27. The firm has a market cap of $250.85 million, a PE ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.78. First Business Financial Services has a 12 month low of $24.57 and a 12 month high of $39.88.

First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $35.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.35 million. First Business Financial Services had a net margin of 20.13% and a return on equity of 15.24%. Equities research analysts forecast that First Business Financial Services will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

First Business Financial Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 7th were issued a dividend of $0.2275 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 4th. This is a boost from First Business Financial Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. First Business Financial Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on FBIZ shares. Piper Sandler started coverage on First Business Financial Services in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com started coverage on First Business Financial Services in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on First Business Financial Services from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 31st.

First Business Financial Services Company Profile

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. It offers deposit products, such as non-interest-bearing transaction accounts, interest-bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, time deposits, and certificates of deposit.