Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) Lowered to Hold at BidaskClub

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) was downgraded by analysts at BidaskClub from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, July 19th.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 29th. Sandler O’Neill upgraded Southern First Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $38.00 in a report on Monday, May 1st. ValuEngine cut Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods set a $36.00 target price on Southern First Bancshares and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Southern First Bancshares currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.33.

Shares of Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ SFST) traded down 0.94% during trading on Wednesday, hitting $36.70. 453 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged. The firm has a market capitalization of $268.42 million, a PE ratio of 18.84 and a beta of 0.65. Southern First Bancshares has a 1-year low of $24.53 and a 1-year high of $38.55. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $36.66 and its 200 day moving average is $34.61.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $14.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.21 million. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.39% and a net margin of 20.68%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Southern First Bancshares will post $2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

In related news, Director Fred Gilmer, Jr. sold 1,200 shares of Southern First Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.69, for a total value of $44,028.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 50,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,846,240.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 14.50% of the company’s stock.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SFST. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. increased its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 47.2% in the second quarter. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. now owns 185,740 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,882,000 after buying an additional 59,600 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 181.4% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 57,829 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,888,000 after buying an additional 37,277 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 8.1% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 415,019 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,550,000 after buying an additional 31,186 shares during the period. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust increased its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 54.3% in the second quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust now owns 71,032 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,632,000 after buying an additional 25,000 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Southern First Bancshares during the second quarter worth $616,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.94% of the company’s stock.

Southern First Bancshares Company Profile

Southern First Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company that owns the capital stock of Southern First Bank (the Bank), a South Carolina state bank, and all of the stock of Greenville First Statutory Trust I and II (the Trusts). The Bank is a commercial bank with approximately nine retail offices located in Greenville, Columbia and Charleston, South Carolina.