First Guaranty Bancshares (NASDAQ:FGBI) Share Price Passes Below 50 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FGBI) shares crossed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $8.66 and traded as low as $8.19. First Guaranty Bancshares shares last traded at $8.47, with a volume of 11,110 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FGBI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of First Guaranty Bancshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of First Guaranty Bancshares in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce”.

First Guaranty Bancshares Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $8.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.38. The stock has a market cap of $126.79 million, a P/E ratio of -2.00 and a beta of 0.31.

First Guaranty Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.01 per share. This represents a $0.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 27th. First Guaranty Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is -0.97%.

Insider Transactions at First Guaranty Bancshares

In other First Guaranty Bancshares news, Director Marshall T. Reynolds purchased 46,297 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $5.40 per share, with a total value of $250,003.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,993,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,766,633.40. This trade represents a 2.38% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Bruce Mcanally acquired 92,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 31st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $5.40 per share, with a total value of $500,040.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 300,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,621,944. This trade represents a 44.57% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 347,893 shares of company stock worth $1,878,622. Company insiders own 47.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Guaranty Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of First Guaranty Bancshares by 8.8% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 46,048 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 3,742 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in First Guaranty Bancshares by 11.1% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 49,565 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 4,956 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in First Guaranty Bancshares by 60.1% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 28,347 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $152,000 after purchasing an additional 10,641 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in First Guaranty Bancshares by 135.6% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,478 shares of the bank’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 6,606 shares in the last quarter. 39.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About First Guaranty Bancshares

First Guaranty Bancshares, Inc is a financial holding company headquartered in Hammond, Louisiana. Through its principal subsidiary, First Guaranty Bank, the company provides a diversified range of commercial and retail banking services. Founded in 1932, First Guaranty Bancshares has grown from a community mutual bank into a publicly traded institution listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker FGBI.

The company’s core business activities encompass traditional deposit products and lending solutions.