The takeaway
First Busey Corp shows a pronounced seasonal pattern over 10 years of data — strongest in November (+5.9%) and softest in March (−5.4%).
Right now
In July, the stock has risen 50% of years, averaging +2.3% — essentially in line with the S&P 500.
The full picture
First Busey Corp's most dependable month has been November, higher in 7 of 10 years; March has been its least reliable, up just 30% of the time.
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Month by month
The stock's clearest edge over the S&P 500 lands in November (+3.6 pts); it has trailed the market most in March (−6.4 pts).
“vs S&P” is First Busey Corp’s average for a month minus the S&P 500’s average for that same month — isolating First Busey Corp’s own seasonal edge from broad market drift.
Reality check
Over the last 5 years, November has closed higher 60% of the time versus 70% across the last 10 years — the pattern is holding.
Figures are the typical (median) November return and how often it rose — the last 5 years versus the last 10(the heatmap’s default window). This verdict stays anchored to that 10-year window even if you zoom the chart, so it never disagrees with the badges above.
In plain English
Dependability is the through-line here. November stands out, higher in 7 of 10 Novembers, but it heads a clutch of months that pull the year reliably upward.
The headline flatters a touch — its +5.9% average sits well above the +3.5% a typical year delivers, the work of a few big Novembers. Crucially, the gain is the stock's own rather than a rising tide's: November has cleared the S&P 500 by +3.6 points above the index. Some of that is a strong month market-wide, mind — November rises for about 62% of stocks — so the tendency is real if not unique.
The strength clusters rather than stands alone — October–December forms a firm stretch that carries much of the year. At the other end of the calendar, March has been the soft spot — the weakest of 3 months that average a loss (−5.4%), and the edge isn't year-round — the stock has trailed the S&P 500 in March, September, and April. Its roughest month on record was a −25.4% March in 2020 — a reminder of how hard even a seasonal name can fall.
Reassuringly, the tendency has held its shape: the recent five years still track the years behind them.
The takeaway is less about when to buy than what to expect: November aside, the stock's months offer little reliable tilt.
Short answers on the stock's best month (November), its worst (March), and whether it really trades seasonally.
Yes, to a pronounced degree. Since 2016 its best month (November, +5.9%) has run well ahead of its worst (March, −5.4%) — the heatmap above shows how steady that gap has been year to year.
November has been the strongest, averaging +5.9% and closing higher in 7 of 10 years since 2016.
It's the weakest, averaging −5.4% — historically a soft spot, though it still varies from year to year.
Explore
These names have the strongest July track records on record — a starting point for comparison.
Before you trade