Chicago Capital Management LLC Takes $352,000 Position in The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS)

Chicago Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 10,043 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $352,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in shares of First Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in First Bancshares by 50.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in First Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth approximately $182,000. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in First Bancshares during the third quarter worth approximately $236,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of First Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at $307,000. 69.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FBMS has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on First Bancshares in a report on Friday, March 21st. They set a “sell” rating for the company.

First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of FBMS stock opened at $35.73 on Wednesday. The First Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.96 and a twelve month high of $39.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a PE ratio of 14.64 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.97.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.98%.

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.