Regional banking company First Busey (NASDAQ: BUSE) met Wall Street’s revenue expectations in Q1 CY2026, with sales up 39.4% year on year to $196.2 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.67 per share was 15.5% above analysts’ consensus estimates.
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First Busey (BUSE) Q1 CY2026 Highlights:
- Net Interest Income: $154 million vs analyst estimates of $154.6 million (48.4% year-on-year growth, in line)
- Net Interest Margin: 3.8% vs analyst estimates of 3.7% (4.7 basis point beat)
- Revenue: $196.2 million vs analyst estimates of $196.7 million (39.4% year-on-year growth, in line)
- Efficiency Ratio: 54.8% vs analyst estimates of 59.8% (500.7 basis point beat)
- Adjusted EPS: $0.67 vs analyst estimates of $0.58 (15.5% beat)
- Tangible Book Value per Share: $20.14 vs analyst estimates of $20.55 (7.7% year-on-year growth, 2% miss)
- Market Capitalization: $2.27 billion
Company Overview
Tracing its roots back to 1868 during America's post-Civil War reconstruction era, First Busey (NASDAQ: BUSE) is a bank holding company that provides commercial and retail banking, wealth management, and payment technology solutions across Illinois, Missouri, Florida, and Indiana.
Sales Growth
Net interest income and and fee-based revenue are the two pillars supporting bank earnings. The former captures profit from the gap between lending rates and deposit costs, while the latter encompasses charges for banking services, credit products, wealth management, and trading activities. Over the last five years, First Busey grew its revenue at an impressive 14.6% compounded annual growth rate. Its growth beat the average banking company and shows its offerings resonate with customers.
We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within financials, a half-decade historical view may miss recent interest rate changes, market returns, and industry trends. First Busey’s annualized revenue growth of 34.3% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand was strong and recently accelerated. 
Note: Quarters not shown were determined to be outliers, impacted by outsized investment gains/losses that are not indicative of the recurring fundamentals of the business.
This quarter, First Busey’s year-on-year revenue growth of 39.4% was wonderful, and its $196.2 million of revenue was in line with Wall Street’s estimates.
Net interest income made up 72.3% of the company’s total revenue during the last five years, meaning lending operations are First Busey’s largest source of revenue.
Our experience and research show the market cares primarily about a bank’s net interest income growth as non-interest income is considered a lower-quality and non-recurring revenue source.
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Tangible Book Value Per Share (TBVPS)
Banks are balance sheet-driven businesses because they generate earnings primarily through borrowing and lending. They’re also valued based on their balance sheet strength and ability to compound book value (another name for shareholders’ equity) over time.
When analyzing banks, tangible book value per share (TBVPS) takes precedence over many other metrics. This measure isolates genuine per-share value by removing intangible assets of debatable liquidation worth. Other (and more commonly known) per-share metrics like EPS can sometimes be murky due to M&A or accounting rules allowing for loan losses to be spread out.
First Busey’s TBVPS grew at a tepid 3.9% annual clip over the last five years. However, TBVPS growth has accelerated recently, growing by 9.4% annually over the last two years from $16.84 to $20.14 per share.
Over the next 12 months, Consensus estimates call for First Busey’s TBVPS to grow by 11.6% to $22.47, mediocre growth rate.
Key Takeaways from First Busey’s Q1 Results
It was good to see First Busey beat analysts’ EPS expectations this quarter. On the other hand, its tangible book value per share missed and its net interest income was in line with Wall Street’s estimates. Zooming out, we think this was a mixed quarter. The stock remained flat at $26.54 immediately following the results.
Big picture, is First Busey a buy here and now? When making that decision, it’s important to consider its valuation, business qualities, as well as what has happened in the latest quarter. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).
