The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) Announces $0.25 Quarterly Dividend

The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 24th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a dividend of 0.25 per share by the bank on Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th.

First Bancshares has raised its dividend payment by an average of 28.9% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 7 consecutive years. First Bancshares has a dividend payout ratio of 37.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect First Bancshares to earn $2.68 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 37.3%.

First Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FBMS traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $25.11. 7,752 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 160,327. First Bancshares has a 1 year low of $22.82 and a 1 year high of $32.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.01. The company has a market cap of $783.93 million, a P/E ratio of 9.94 and a beta of 0.88.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $60.01 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.10 million. First Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 20.00%. Equities analysts predict that First Bancshares will post 2.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. TheStreet downgraded First Bancshares from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded First Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of First Bancshares in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $34.00 target price on shares of First Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, First Bancshares presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.00.

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.