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Business First Bancshares
(NASDAQ:BFST)
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Rating:74Outperform
Price Target:
$34.00
â–²(8.04% Upside)
Action:Upgraded
Date:07/24/26
BFST scores well primarily on financial performance (strong revenue growth, solid profitability, and improved leverage/capitalization), supported by an attractive valuation (low P/E with a modest dividend). Technicals are moderately positive (trend above key moving averages with neutral momentum), while the earnings call adds a constructive but cautious outlook given deposit outflows, elevated expenses, and execution/credit-resolution risks.
Positive Factors
Multi-year Revenue Growth
Sustained multi-year revenue expansion reflects durable loan growth and broader product uptake across commercial and retail lines. A rising revenue base supports long‑term earnings power, economies of scale, and capacity to invest in origination, technology, and credit reserves without relying on one-off gains.
Negative Factors
Deposit Outflows & Funding Risk
Material deposit declines shrink low‑cost funding and can raise reliance on wholesale borrowings or FHLB advances, pressuring net interest margin and asset growth capacity. Persistent deposit volatility would force higher funding costs or slower loan deployment, weighing on sustainable earnings.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Multi-year Revenue Growth
Sustained multi-year revenue expansion reflects durable loan growth and broader product uptake across commercial and retail lines. A rising revenue base supports long‑term earnings power, economies of scale, and capacity to invest in origination, technology, and credit reserves without relying on one-off gains.
Read all positive factors
Business First Bancshares (BFST) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$1.04B
Dividend Yield1.85%
Average Volume (3M)130.33K
Price to Earnings (P/E)11.4
Beta (1Y)0.95
Revenue Growth8.88%
EPS Growth11.73%
CountryUS
Employees842
SectorFinancial
Sector Strength70
IndustryBanks - Regional
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)2.82
Shares Outstanding32,535,660
10 Day Avg. Volume162,832
30 Day Avg. Volume130,328
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.41
Price to Book (P/B)0.86
Price to Sales (P/S)1.51
P/FCF Ratio8.39
Enterprise Value/Market Cap<0.01
Enterprise Value/Revenue<0.01
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit<0.01
Enterprise Value/Ebitda<0.01
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$36.00Price Target Upside14.39% Upside
Rating ConsensusModerate Buy
Number of Analyst Covering2
EPS Forecast (FY)3.01
Revenue Forecast (FY)$370.68M
Business First Bancshares Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Business First Bancshares, Inc. (BFST) serves as the bank holding company for b1BANK, delivering an extensive array of banking products and financial services. Its deposit offerings include checking, demand, money market, time, and savings account...
How the Company Makes Money
BFST primarily makes money through its banking subsidiary by generating net interest income and noninterest (fee-based) income.
1) Net interest income (core earnings driver)
- Interest on loans: The largest revenue stream typically comes from int...
Business First Bancshares Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Jul 23, 2026
(Q2-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Oct 22, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call conveyed a generally positive outlook: solid core earnings, margin expansion (+8 bps), capital-raising success, and meaningful credit improvements (NPL ratio improvement to 1.26% and ~30% reduction in NPLs) are notable strengths. Challenges include a sizable deposit outflow in the quarter (partially strategic), elevated noninterest expense tied to one-time marketing and legal items, softer noninterest income from swap fees, and near-term uncertainty tied to loan sale redeployment and potential charge-offs while resolving problem credits. Management provided clear mitigation plans (redeploying proceeds, expecting deposit seasonality to reverse, expense normalization in Q3/Q4, and capital flexibility), and reiterated achievable targets for margin, loan growth, and end-of-year capital ratios, supporting a constructive forward view.Positive Updates
Strong Quarterly Earnings and EPS
GAAP net income of $22.8 million and GAAP EPS of $0.70. Non-GAAP (core) net income was $23.3 million and core EPS was $0.71, reflecting solid profitability versus prior periods.
Negative Updates
Quarterly Deposit Decline
Total deposits decreased $229.4 million in Q2, driven by a $237.9 million decline in interest-bearing deposits (notably ~$72 million commercial money market outflows and ~$63 million in broker deposits). Management called ~25% of the decline purposeful (broker paydown) and the remainder seasonal, but the outflow materially reduced deposit balances in the quarter.
Read all updates
Q2-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Strong Quarterly Earnings and EPS
GAAP net income of $22.8 million and GAAP EPS of $0.70. Non-GAAP (core) net income was $23.3 million and core EPS was $0.71, reflecting solid profitability versus prior periods.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
The company guided to a modestly constructive back half of 2026 assuming no further rate cuts this year, calling for mid‑/high‑single‑digit annualized loan growth in Q3 and Q4 (management suggested splitting redeployment of loan‑sale liquidity roughly half/half across the two quarters), modest margin improvement from the Q2 GAAP NIM of 3.73% (core NIM 3.68%, both +8 bps QoQ) supported by a 6.58% core loan yield (7.21% weighted average new/renewed loan yield) and a June cost of deposits of 2.26%, and deposit beta preparedness of ~45–55% (CD retention ~83% in Q2); credit trends should continue to improve from Q2 NPL ratio 1.26% and NPA 1.23% (management expects another ~10–20% NPL resolution in Q3 and to be nearer ~$50M by year‑end), core noninterest expense is expected around $58M in Q3 and ~$57M in Q4 (benefiting from Progressive conversion cost saves), capital targets assume consolidated total risk‑based ~13.9%, CET1 ~10.6% and TCE ~9% by year‑end (after issuing $85M subordinated debt that added ~50 bps), and the firm reiterated a target to materially improve structural profitability with a stretch goal of exiting the year near a 1.25% ROA.Business First Bancshares Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
78
Positive
Balance Sheet
74
Positive
Cash Flow
63
Positive
| Breakdown | TTM | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 520.18M | 511.93M | 457.75M | 385.62M | 264.08M | 203.11M |
| Gross Profit | 321.05M | 311.86M | 259.50M | 242.94M | 216.65M | 178.51M |
| EBITDA | 122.95M | 119.09M | 88.31M | 95.26M | 73.41M | 68.72M |
| Net Income | 90.88M | 87.86M | 65.11M | 71.04M | 54.26M | 52.14M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 8.91B | 8.21B | 7.86B | 6.58B | 5.99B | 4.73B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 1.21B | 1.00B | 347.76M | 1.11B | 1.04B | 1.09B |
| Total Debt | 384.52M | 551.35M | 483.26M | 635.07M | 560.12M | 187.59M |
| Total Liabilities | 7.92B | 7.32B | 7.06B | 5.94B | 5.41B | 4.29B |
| Stockholders Equity | 991.18M | 896.88M | 799.47M | 644.26M | 580.48M | 433.37M |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 86.83M | 92.08M | 59.84M | 80.78M | 61.80M | 52.47M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 90.05M | 92.08M | 61.40M | 92.43M | 69.58M | 56.44M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -99.53M | -281.53M | -294.91M | -521.14M | -700.52M | -675.35M |
| Financing Cash Flow | 286.40M | 281.52M | 326.50M | 502.08M | 715.31M | 538.15M |
Business First Bancshares Risk Analysis
Business First Bancshares disclosed 56 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Business First Bancshares reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Business First Bancshares Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (68)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
77 Outperform | $974.26M | 12.96 | 8.02% | 2.45% | 20.29% | 19.48% | |
76 Outperform | $1.16B | 14.11 | 15.92% | 1.92% | 18.89% | 38.49% | |
74 Outperform | $1.04B | 11.38 | 9.85% | 1.87% | 8.88% | 11.73% | |
73 Outperform | $953.40M | 16.05 | 9.62% | 2.65% | 6.50% | 28.40% | |
70 Outperform | $879.19M | 13.37 | 10.58% | 2.17% | -8.97% | 3.23% | |
69 Neutral | $865.81M | 13.16 | 10.88% | 1.09% | -2.39% | 12.14% | |
68 Neutral | $18.00B | 11.42 | 9.92% | 3.81% | 9.73% | 1.22% |
* Financial Sector Average
BFST
Business First Bancshares
31.94
8.72
37.54%
GSBC
Great Southern Bancorp
80.14
24.67
44.48%
MPB
Mid Penn Bancorp
38.54
11.89
44.60%
TRST
TrustCo Bank
56.56
24.12
74.37%
HTB
Hometrust Bancshares
51.16
12.78
33.31%
FSBC
Five Star
47.24
17.89
60.95%
Business First Bancshares Corporate Events
Business Operations and StrategyStock BuybackDividendsFinancial DisclosuresM&A Transactions
Business First Bancshares Reports Strong Q2 2026 Results
Positive
Jul 23, 2026
Business First Bancshares reported unaudited second-quarter 2026 net income available to common shareholders of $22.8 million, or $0.70 per diluted share, modestly higher than the prior quarter, while core non-GAAP net income dipped to $23.3 milli...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.