First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Lowered to Neutral at Janney Montgomery Scott

Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on FBMS. Hovde Group increased their price target on First Bancshares from $29.00 to $32.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised First Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $31.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on First Bancshares in a report on Sunday, October 20th. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.50.

First Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FBMS opened at $32.99 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.80 and a beta of 0.92. First Bancshares has a twelve month low of $22.96 and a twelve month high of $34.40. The company has a fifty day moving average of $32.47 and a 200-day moving average of $28.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $104.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $70.40 million. First Bancshares had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 8.82%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that First Bancshares will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FBMS. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in First Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $226,000. FCG Investment Co purchased a new position in First Bancshares during the first quarter worth about $679,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in First Bancshares by 49.0% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 21,006 shares of the bank’s stock worth $540,000 after purchasing an additional 6,904 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in First Bancshares by 47.0% in the 1st quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 24,549 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $637,000 after buying an additional 7,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 652.7% during the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 7,474 shares of the bank’s stock worth $194,000 after buying an additional 6,481 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.