First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Earns Sell Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning. The brokerage issued a sell rating on the bank’s stock.

FBMS has been the topic of a number of other reports. Janney Montgomery Scott cut First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.17.

First Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of FBMS opened at $34.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $35.84 and a 200 day moving average of $32.34. The company has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.71 and a beta of 0.93. First Bancshares has a 12 month low of $22.96 and a 12 month high of $39.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. First Bancshares’s payout ratio is 45.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bancshares

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FBMS. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in shares of First Bancshares by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 19,503 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $499,000 after buying an additional 861 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 50.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 73.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the bank’s stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 1.8% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 72,262 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,877,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Finally, Centiva Capital LP grew its position in shares of First Bancshares by 17.8% in the third quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 9,767 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 1,476 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.95% of the company’s stock.

First Bancshares Company Profile

The First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The First Bank that provides general commercial and retail banking services. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Retail Bank, Mortgage Banking Division, and Holding Company. It offers deposit services, including checking, NOW, and savings accounts; other time deposits, such as daily money market accounts and longer-term certificates of deposit; and individual retirement and health savings accounts.