StockNews.com Begins Coverage on First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS)

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) in a report released on Thursday morning. The brokerage issued a sell rating on the bank’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on FBMS. Hovde Group lifted their target price on shares of First Bancshares from $29.00 to $32.50 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised First Bancshares from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and raised their target price for the stock from $31.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $35.50.

First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FBMS opened at $31.65 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.51. First Bancshares has a 12 month low of $22.96 and a 12 month high of $34.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $988.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.56 and a beta of 0.93.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.02. First Bancshares had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 8.82%. The business had revenue of $104.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.85 earnings per share. Analysts expect that First Bancshares will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 8th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 8th. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.68%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bancshares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,548,000. Algebris UK Ltd purchased a new stake in First Bancshares during the first quarter worth $3,492,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,115,691 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $32,724,000 after purchasing an additional 106,088 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 65.0% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 231,635 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,018,000 after acquiring an additional 91,269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning raised its holdings in First Bancshares by 310.0% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 91,591 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,380,000 after acquiring an additional 69,254 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.95% of the company’s stock.

First Bancshares Company Profile

The First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The First Bank that provides general commercial and retail banking services. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Retail Bank, Mortgage Banking Division, and Holding Company. It offers deposit services, including checking, NOW, and savings accounts; other time deposits, such as daily money market accounts and longer-term certificates of deposit; and individual retirement and health savings accounts.