Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Boosts Holdings in Southern First Bancshares, Inc. $SFST

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) by 89.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,495 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,545 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Southern First Bancshares were worth $1,335,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SFST. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 2.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 34,910 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 890 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 4.8% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 66,603 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,193,000 after buying an additional 3,074 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Southern First Bancshares by 23.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,637 shares of the bank’s stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 3,532 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in Southern First Bancshares during the first quarter valued at $303,000. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in Southern First Bancshares by 14.2% during the second quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 41,850 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,592,000 after buying an additional 5,200 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on SFST. Wall Street Zen cut shares of 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $64.00.

Insider Transactions at Southern First Bancshares

In other news, Director Leighton M. Cubbage sold 765 shares of Southern First Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.60, for a total value of $46,359.00. Following the sale, the director owned 50,715 shares in the company, valued at $3,073,329. This trade represents a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Southern First Bancshares Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:SFST opened at $62.49 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $57.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.19. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.30 and a 1 year high of $62.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $591.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.67. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $32.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.10 million. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 15.21%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.