First Business Financial Services (NASDAQ:FBIZ) shares ended the last trading session 5.2% higher at $26.46. The jump came on an impressive volume with a higher-than-average number of shares changing hands in the session. This compares to the stock's 0.1% gain over the past four weeks.
First Business Financial Services extended its rally for the second consequent day. Investors’ bullish sentiments stemmed from better-than-expected first quarter 2021 results. The bank’s earnings of $1.12 per share handily surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 74 cents. Also, this reflected a substantial improvement from 38 cents earned in the prior quarter.
Results benefited from growth in operating revenues, reserve releases and growth in loan balance. However, higher operating expenses and lower rates were the headwinds.
Price and Consensus
This bank holding company for First Business Bank and First Business Bank-Milwaukee is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.68 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +79%. Revenues are expected to be $27.17 million, up 7.8% from the year-ago quarter.
Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.
For First Business Financial Services, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. And a stock's price usually doesn't keep moving higher in the absence of any trend in earnings estimate revisions. So, make sure to keep an eye on FBIZ going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.
The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
First Business Financial Services, Inc. (FBIZ): Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research