Ray Lattimore Sells 253 Shares of Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Stock

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) Director Ray Lattimore sold 253 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.28, for a total value of $14,997.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $66,808.56. This represents a 18.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of SFST opened at $61.15 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The company has a market capitalization of $578.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 0.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $60.02 and a 200 day moving average of $57.40. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.30 and a 12 month high of $64.06.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The bank reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $20.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.30 million. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 16.78%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on SFST shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,143 shares of the bank’s stock worth $662,000 after acquiring an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 78.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 18,201 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $992,000 after acquiring an additional 7,985 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in Southern First Bancshares during the first quarter valued at about $398,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 9.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 27,241 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,485,000 after purchasing an additional 2,282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its position in Southern First Bancshares by 55.0% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 15,615 shares of the bank’s stock worth $851,000 after purchasing an additional 5,540 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

Southern First Bancshares Company Profile

Southern First Bancshares is the bank holding company for Southern First Bank, a community-oriented financial institution headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company delivers a full spectrum of commercial and consumer banking services designed to meet the needs of small and midsize businesses, professionals, and individual customers. Southern First Bancshares operates under a relationship-driven model, emphasizing personalized service and local decision–making.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside an array of lending solutions covering commercial real estate, construction, equipment financing and small business administration (SBA) loans.