Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 72,600 shares, a growth of 24.5% from the February 13th total of 58,300 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 18,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SFST traded up $0.35 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $33.31. 12,060 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,865. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $35.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.19. Southern First Bancshares has a one year low of $24.98 and a one year high of $45.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $272.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.35 and a beta of 0.87.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.29. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 4.85% and a net margin of 7.28%. Research analysts anticipate that Southern First Bancshares will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in Southern First Bancshares by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 15,746 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $626,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares in the fourth quarter worth approximately $286,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 53,443 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,124,000 after buying an additional 675 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 36.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 9,114 shares of the bank’s stock worth $362,000 after buying an additional 2,455 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 278,549 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,072,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the period. 75.00% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.