Analysts Set ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS) Target Price at $88.00

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $91.00.

SFBS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of ServisFirst Bancshares from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $89.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial raised ServisFirst Bancshares from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $95.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised ServisFirst Bancshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Hovde Group raised ServisFirst Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $89.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of ServisFirst Bancshares in a research report on Monday, December 29th.

Key Stories Impacting ServisFirst Bancshares

Here are the key news stories impacting ServisFirst Bancshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and strong financials — SFBS reported Q4 EPS of $1.58 (beating consensus), revenue above estimates, a 3.38% net interest margin, improved efficiency and a raised cash dividend; management highlighted loan and deposit growth and strong liquidity. ServisFirst Q4 press release
• Positive Sentiment: Loan growth and margin expansion are driving higher earnings — loans grew ~$385M in Q4 (12% annualized) and NIM expanded ~42 bps year-over-year, aided by disciplined loan pricing and lower deposit costs. This underpins higher forward earnings potential. SFBS Q4 deep dive
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades lift the story — Raymond James moved SFBS to “strong-buy” ($95 PT) and Piper Sandler to “overweight” ($89 PT), signaling broker confidence in near-term upside and validating the quarter. Analyst coverage roundup
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish investor write-ups point to durable fundamentals — commentary (e.g., Seeking Alpha) emphasizes relationship-driven lending, margin tailwinds and disciplined expense control as reasons to prefer SFBS among regionals. Why ServisFirst remains preferred
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call/color confirms strategy — management reiterated focus on NIM expansion, expense discipline and growth in Texas; these are operational details that support continued execution but contain no new guidance shock. Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Asset-quality deterioration — non-performing assets rose to ~0.97% (from 0.26% y/y) with $5M of Q4 charge-offs and a modestly higher provision; investors will watch for further credit stress as loans grow. Q4 earnings summary with credit details
• Negative Sentiment: Higher tax expense and an insider sale — Q4 effective tax rate rose and income tax expense increased materially; also the CEO sold ~22k shares recently, which some investors view as a modest negative signal. Insider and tax notes

ServisFirst Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SFBS opened at $87.36 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. ServisFirst Bancshares has a one year low of $66.48 and a one year high of $93.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.26 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s fifty day moving average is $73.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.82.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $162.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $151.82 million. ServisFirst Bancshares had a net margin of 26.95% and a return on equity of 16.66%. Analysts forecast that ServisFirst Bancshares will post 5.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ServisFirst Bancshares Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were given a $0.38 dividend. This is a boost from ServisFirst Bancshares’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. ServisFirst Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.04%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ServisFirst Bancshares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in ServisFirst Bancshares by 214.1% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in ServisFirst Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in ServisFirst Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares by 105.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.31% of the company’s stock.

ServisFirst Bancshares Company Profile

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, and the parent of ServisFirst Bank. The company specializes in commercial banking services, catering primarily to small and mid-sized businesses, professionals and entrepreneurs. Its product portfolio encompasses commercial real estate lending, commercial and industrial loans, deposit accounts, treasury management and other ancillary banking products designed to meet the financial needs of its clients.

ServisFirst Bank offers a full suite of deposit products, including interest-bearing checking, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, as well as a variety of loan products.