First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Earns Sell Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) in a research note released on Thursday morning. The brokerage issued a sell rating on the bank’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on FBMS. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.75.

First Bancshares Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of FBMS stock opened at $35.65 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $35.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.17. First Bancshares has a 1 year low of $22.96 and a 1 year high of $39.08.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. First Bancshares’s payout ratio is 45.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bancshares

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 73.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 1,251 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in First Bancshares by 50.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock worth $103,000 after buying an additional 1,076 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $203,000. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new position in First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter worth about $216,000. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $236,000. 69.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Bancshares Company Profile

The First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The First Bank that provides general commercial and retail banking services. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Retail Bank, Mortgage Banking Division, and Holding Company. It offers deposit services, including checking, NOW, and savings accounts; other time deposits, such as daily money market accounts and longer-term certificates of deposit; and individual retirement and health savings accounts.