Insider Buying: Primis Financial (NASDAQ:FRST) Director Acquires 1,925 Shares of Stock

Primis Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:FRST) Director John Fitzgerald Biagas purchased 1,925 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $12.80 per share, with a total value of $24,640.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 91,944 shares in the company, valued at $1,176,883.20. The trade was a 2.14% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

John Fitzgerald Biagas also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, March 11th, John Fitzgerald Biagas acquired 1,550 shares of Primis Financial stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.75 per share, for a total transaction of $19,762.50.

Primis Financial Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:FRST traded down $0.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $12.76. The company had a trading volume of 25,370 shares, compared to its average volume of 95,452. The stock has a market cap of $314.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 0.75. Primis Financial Corp. has a one year low of $7.59 and a one year high of $14.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Primis Financial (NASDAQ:FRST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.24). Primis Financial had a net margin of 18.78% and a return on equity of 4.11%. The company had revenue of $80.87 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.01 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Primis Financial Corp. will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Primis Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Primis Financial’s payout ratio is 20.73%.

Primis Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 18th that permits the company to repurchase $750,000.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 0.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on FRST shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Primis Financial in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Primis Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1.00.

Institutional Trading of Primis Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Primis Financial by 290.2% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,744 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Primis Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Primis Financial by 154.8% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 2,767 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Primis Financial by 135.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,000 after buying an additional 4,262 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Primis Financial by 278.2% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,742 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 5,695 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.96% of the company’s stock.

About Primis Financial

Primis Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Waycross, Georgia, operating through its wholly owned subsidiary, Primis Bank. The company offers a full suite of commercial and retail banking services tailored to meet the needs of individuals, small businesses, and agricultural clients across its service area. Primis Bank focuses on building relationships within the communities it serves, positioning itself as a local financial partner for deposit-taking, lending, and treasury management solutions.

Primis Bank maintains a network of branch offices throughout southeastern Georgia, serving a combination of rural and suburban markets.