Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Upgraded to Hold by StockNews.com

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

Southern First Bancshares Price Performance

SFST stock traded down $0.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $35.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,950. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company’s 50 day moving average is $28.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.86. Southern First Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $24.98 and a fifty-two week high of $39.36. The stock has a market cap of $287.09 million, a PE ratio of 21.46 and a beta of 0.83.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The bank reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.08. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 4.30% and a net margin of 6.69%. The firm had revenue of $54.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.13 million. Equities research analysts expect that Southern First Bancshares will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Southern First Bancshares

In other news, Director Leighton M. Cubbage sold 1,771 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.34, for a total transaction of $48,419.14. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 62,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,713,233.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,963 shares of company stock valued at $110,306. 7.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SFST. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 28,280 shares of the bank’s stock worth $827,000 after acquiring an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 7.3% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,860 shares of the bank’s stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 19.3% in the second quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,983 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,614 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 139,310 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,424,000 after buying an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Southern First Bancshares by 93.5% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,921 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $125,000 after buying an additional 1,895 shares during the period. 75.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Southern First Bancshares

Southern First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Southern First Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans to the general public in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. The company accepts various deposit products that include checking accounts, commercial checking accounts, and savings accounts, as well as other time deposits, including daily money market accounts and long-term certificates of deposit.