Piper Sandler Reaffirms Overweight Rating for Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST)

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating reissued by equities researchers at Piper Sandler in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $43.00 target price on the bank’s stock. Piper Sandler’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 18.29% from the company’s current price.

Southern First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SFST traded up $1.35 on Tuesday, reaching $36.35. 1,991 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,329. Southern First Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $25.95 and a fifty-two week high of $45.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $296.94 million, a PE ratio of 18.93 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $34.51 and its 200-day moving average is $36.24.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.04. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 4.85% and a net margin of 7.28%. The business had revenue of $26.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.56 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Southern First Bancshares will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Southern First Bancshares

In other Southern First Bancshares news, Director William Iv Maner bought 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $36.15 per share, with a total value of $25,305.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $97,605. This represents a 35.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 7.06% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 9,638.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,012 shares of the bank’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 6,940 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors lifted its position in Southern First Bancshares by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors now owns 5,725 shares of the bank’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 49.5% during the first quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,306 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $273,000 after acquiring an additional 2,750 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 44.8% in the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 8,535 shares of the bank’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 2,639 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Southern First Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth $286,000. 75.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern First Bancshares Company Profile

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.