Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Stock Crosses Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average of $31.76

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST)’s share price crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $31.76 and traded as low as $26.43. Southern First Bancshares shares last traded at $26.61, with a volume of 8,411 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $34.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $31.56 and its 200-day moving average is $31.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $217.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The bank reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.12. Southern First Bancshares had a net margin of 7.16% and a return on equity of 4.41%. The firm had revenue of $51.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.46 million. On average, analysts predict that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern First Bancshares

In other Southern First Bancshares news, CEO R Arthur Seaver, Jr. sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.13, for a total value of $77,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,831,896.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO R Arthur Seaver, Jr. sold 996 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.25, for a total value of $31,125.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 83,470 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,608,437.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO R Arthur Seaver, Jr. sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.13, for a total transaction of $77,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 90,970 shares in the company, valued at $2,831,896.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,513 shares of company stock worth $109,477. 7.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 397,247 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,738,000 after purchasing an additional 3,229 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 151,436 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,618,000 after acquiring an additional 32,621 shares in the last quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp bought a new position in Southern First Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth $286,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 20,121 shares of the bank’s stock worth $746,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 26,847 shares of the bank’s stock worth $997,000 after acquiring an additional 7,707 shares in the last quarter. 75.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Southern First Bancshares

Southern First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Southern First Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans to the general public in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. The company accepts various deposit products that include checking accounts, commercial checking accounts, and savings accounts, as well as other time deposits, including daily money market accounts and long-term certificates of deposit.