Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.03 EPS

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) issued its earnings results on Tuesday. The bank reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.03, FiscalAI reports. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 16.78%. The company had revenue of $37.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.60 million.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Performance

SFST opened at $59.13 on Tuesday. Southern First Bancshares has a 52-week low of $40.91 and a 52-week high of $65.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $61.68 and a 200-day moving average of $59.93. The company has a market cap of $559.37 million, a PE ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 0.71.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern First Bancshares in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern First Bancshares has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Julie Fairchild sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $94,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,200 shares in the company, valued at $327,600. The trade was a 22.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Leighton Cubbage sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.26, for a total transaction of $74,712.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 47,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,932,446. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 5,615 shares of company stock valued at $351,739 in the last three months. 6.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Southern First Bancshares Company Profile

Southern First Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. Through its subsidiary, Southern First Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to businesses, professionals and individuals.

Southern First Bank offers commercial and consumer deposit accounts, residential and commercial real estate loans, business loans, construction and development financing, and other credit products. Its services also include treasury and cash-management solutions, online and mobile banking, and related personal and business banking services.

Founded in 1999, Southern First serves customers through banking offices in South Carolina and North Carolina, including markets such as Greenville, Columbia and Charleston, South Carolina, and the Charlotte, North Carolina, area.