Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFSTGet Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $62.20 and last traded at $61.9440, with a volume of 67483 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $61.51.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SFST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.00.

Get Our Latest Research Report on SFST

Southern First Bancshares Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market cap of $584.30 million, a P/E ratio of 14.40 and a beta of 0.68.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFSTGet Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $32.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.10 million. Southern First Bancshares had a net margin of 15.21% and a return on equity of 9.65%. As a group, analysts forecast that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 8.6% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 12,143 shares of the bank’s stock worth $662,000 after acquiring an additional 957 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 78.2% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 18,201 shares of the bank’s stock worth $992,000 after purchasing an additional 7,985 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in Southern First Bancshares in the first quarter worth $398,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 9.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 27,241 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,485,000 after buying an additional 2,282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 55.0% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 15,615 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $851,000 after buying an additional 5,540 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

About Southern First Bancshares

(Get Free Report)

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.

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