Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on SFST. Zacks Research lowered shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Southern First Bancshares in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.00.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Up 2.7%

SFST opened at $56.43 on Monday. Southern First Bancshares has a one year low of $29.14 and a one year high of $58.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $462.16 million, a P/E ratio of 15.09 and a beta of 0.77. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $53.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.35.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.90 million. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 13.52%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Southern First Bancshares will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David G. Ellison sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.28, for a total value of $53,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 49,661 shares in the company, valued at $2,645,938.08. This trade represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 7.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 28.7% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,380 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 154.0% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,633 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 990 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Southern First Bancshares during the second quarter worth $75,000. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its position in Southern First Bancshares by 111.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,714 shares of the bank’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 903 shares in the last quarter. 75.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.