Fourthstone LLC Takes $1.16 Million Position in Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST)

Fourthstone LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 33,897 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,155,000. Fourthstone LLC owned 0.42% of Southern First Bancshares at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SFST. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 4.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 413,259 shares of the bank’s stock worth $13,125,000 after purchasing an additional 16,012 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 19.3% in the 2nd quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,983 shares of the bank’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 1,614 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 92,293 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,699,000 after acquiring an additional 7,786 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,430 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $492,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at about $101,000. 75.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern First Bancshares

In other news, CAO Julie Ann Fairchild sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.23, for a total value of $45,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $264,143.20. This represents a 14.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Leighton M. Cubbage sold 1,744 shares of Southern First Bancshares stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.18, for a total transaction of $54,377.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 58,818 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,833,945.24. The trade was a 2.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,549 shares of company stock worth $223,348 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 7.62% of the company’s stock.

Southern First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of SFST stock traded up $0.40 during trading on Thursday, hitting $44.50. The company had a trading volume of 17,380 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,725. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $38.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $363.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.72 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $24.98 and a 52 week high of $45.90.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.16. Southern First Bancshares had a net margin of 6.67% and a return on equity of 4.42%. The firm had revenue of $54.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.57 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.