BNP Paribas Financial Markets Cuts Stock Holdings in Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) by 35.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,328 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 738 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Southern First Bancshares were worth $53,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 797,043 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,683,000 after buying an additional 2,026 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,300 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $16,747,000 after buying an additional 1,249 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 350,875 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,947,000 after buying an additional 10,854 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 278,549 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,072,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhino Investment Partners Inc grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2,936.8% during the fourth quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 230,221 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,151,000 after buying an additional 222,640 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William Iv Maner bought 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $36.15 per share, for a total transaction of $25,305.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $97,605. This trade represents a 35.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 7.06% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Southern First Bancshares Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of SFST stock opened at $35.74 on Wednesday. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.81 and a 12-month high of $45.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $34.34 and its 200 day moving average is $36.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $291.96 million, a P/E ratio of 18.61 and a beta of 0.77.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. Southern First Bancshares had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 4.85%. The company had revenue of $26.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $26.56 million. Research analysts expect that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern First Bancshares Profile

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.