Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $62.50 and last traded at $61.90, with a volume of 13623 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $61.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SFST has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Southern First Bancshares from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.00.

Southern First Bancshares Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $57.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.14. The firm has a market cap of $590.08 million, a PE ratio of 14.58 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.01). Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 15.21%.The business had revenue of $32.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.10 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Leighton M. Cubbage sold 765 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.60, for a total transaction of $46,359.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 50,715 shares in the company, valued at $3,073,329. The trade was a 1.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 40.2% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 666 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 9,458 shares of the bank’s stock worth $360,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 28.7% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,380 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 34,910 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after purchasing an additional 890 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

About Southern First Bancshares

Southern First Bancshares is the bank holding company for Southern First Bank, a community-oriented financial institution headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company delivers a full spectrum of commercial and consumer banking services designed to meet the needs of small and midsize businesses, professionals, and individual customers. Southern First Bancshares operates under a relationship-driven model, emphasizing personalized service and local decision–making.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside an array of lending solutions covering commercial real estate, construction, equipment financing and small business administration (SBA) loans.