Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The bank reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 8.63% and a net margin of 13.52%.

Southern First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFST opened at $55.75 on Tuesday. Southern First Bancshares has a twelve month low of $31.52 and a twelve month high of $62.00. The company has a market capitalization of $459.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.91 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on SFST. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Southern First Bancshares from $54.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Southern First Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern First Bancshares has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $64.00.

Insider Activity at Southern First Bancshares

In related news, insider Silvia T. King sold 2,625 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.49, for a total value of $158,786.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 3,963 shares in the company, valued at approximately $239,721.87. This represents a 39.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 34,910 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after buying an additional 890 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 4.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 66,603 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,193,000 after buying an additional 3,074 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 23.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,637 shares of the bank’s stock worth $614,000 after acquiring an additional 3,532 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern First Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at about $303,000. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 14.2% in the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 41,850 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,592,000 after acquiring an additional 5,200 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

About Southern First Bancshares

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.