James Ayers, a major holder of FB Financial Corporation (FBK), recently added 2,000 shares. The buy increased his holdings by less than 1 percent, and came to a total cost of $70,580.
Ayers was the last insider buyer with a 6,500 share pickup last August, totaling just under $199,000. Ayers made a dozen buys last year. Two company directors have also bought shares in the past year, with one of them spending just over $401,000 in total.
Overall, FB Financial insiders own 25.2 percent of shares.
The Tennessee-based regional bank has traded flat over the past year, underperforming the stock market but outperforming most peers in the regional bank sector.
FB Financial shares trade at an 18 percent premium to book value, a bit on the expensive side for a regional banks. However, the bank’s balance sheet is relatively conservative, with twice as much cash as debt.
Action to take: Investors may like shares at current prices or on a pullback. Tennessee has seen some strong economic growth in recent years, and should continue to see more, to the benefit of local banks.
At current prices, FB Financial yields 1.6 percent.
For traders, the April $35 calls, last going for about $3.75, are already about $2.00 in-the-money. They could move higher on a further uptrend in FB financial shares in the coming months.
Disclosure: The author of this article has no position in the company mentioned here, but may trade after the next 72 hours. The author receives no compensation from any company mentioned in this article.