First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ) is expected to report earnings of $0.90 per share

Stock analysts predict that First Business Financial Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBIZ – Get a rating) will report earnings per share (EPS) of $0.90 for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Two analysts released earnings estimates for First Business Financial Services, with the lowest EPS estimate at $0.89 and the highest at $0.91. First Business Financial Services reported earnings per share of $0.95 in the same quarter last year, which would indicate a negative 5.3% year-over-year growth rate. The company is expected to release its next earnings report on Monday, January 1.

According to Zacks, analysts expect First Business Financial Services to report annual earnings of $3.78 per share for the current year, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.75 to $3.79. For the next fiscal year, analysts expect the company to report earnings of $4.02 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.99 to $4.05. Zacks Investment Research earnings per share averages are an average based on a survey of sell-side research firms that provide coverage for First Business Financial Services.

First Corporate Financial Services (NASDAQ: FBIZ – Get a rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 28. The financial services provider reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.02 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.11. First Business Financial Services achieved a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 27.82%. The company posted revenue of $28.81 million in the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.30 million.

FBIZ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Investment Research downgraded First Business Financial Services from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a Friday, April 29 research note. StockNews.com launched coverage on First Business Financial Services in a research note on Thursday, March 31. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. One research analyst rated the stock with a sell rating, one assigned a hold rating and two assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.50.

In other news, Director Carla C. Chavarria acquired 755 shares in a transaction that took place on Thursday, April 14. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $33.27 per share, for a total transaction of $25,118.85. Following completion of the transaction, the administrator now directly owns 3,966 shares of the company, valued at $131,948.82. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, available at the SEC website. 6.10% of the shares are held by insiders of the company.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently changed their stakes in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of First Business Financial Services during Q4, valued at approximately $26,000. UBS Group AG acquired a new stake in First Business Financial Services in Q1 worth approximately $37,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. increased its position in First Business Financial Services by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,600 shares of the financial services provider valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in First Business Financial Services shares by 105.5% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,905 shares of the financial services provider worth $113,000 after buying an additional 2,005 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired a new stake in the shares of First Business Financial Services during the 4th quarter for a value of approximately $140,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.27% of the company’s shares.

Shares of NASDAQ:FBIZ traded down $0.01 in midday trading on Monday, hitting $35.38. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 49,593 shares, compared to an average volume of 22,451. First Business Financial Services has a fifty-two week low of $25.69 and a fifty-two week high of 35 $.92. The company has a market capitalization of $299.60 million, a P/E ratio of 8.74 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.99.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 19. Investors of record on Monday, May 9 received a dividend of $0.1975. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 6. This represents a dividend of $0.79 on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. First Business Financial Services payout ratio is 19.51%.

First Business Financial Services Company Profile (Get a rating)

First Business Financial Services, Inc operates as a banking holding company for First Business Bank which provides commercial banking products and services to small and medium-sized businesses, business owners, executives, professionals and high net worth individuals. The Company offers deposit products, such as non-interest bearing transaction accounts, interest bearing transaction accounts, money market accounts, term deposits and certificates of deposit, as well as credit cards.

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