Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) Short Interest Update

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) saw a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 120,699 shares, a growth of 47.5% from the February 26th total of 81,851 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 97,320 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.2 days.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of SFST traded down $0.37 on Friday, reaching $53.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 42,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 99,112. Southern First Bancshares has a twelve month low of $29.14 and a twelve month high of $62.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $440.14 million, a PE ratio of 14.30 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $55.82 and a 200-day moving average of $50.81.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.90 million. Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 8.63% and a net margin of 13.52%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.70 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Southern First Bancshares will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SFST has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Zacks Research lowered Southern First Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Southern First Bancshares in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Southern First Bancshares from $54.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southern First Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $64.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Silvia T. King sold 2,625 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.49, for a total transaction of $158,786.25. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $239,721.87. This represents a 39.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 7.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern First Bancshares

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its position 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 during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in Southern First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 28.7% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,380 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 154.0% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,633 shares of the bank’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 111.3% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,714 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 903 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

Southern First Bancshares Company Profile

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.