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

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) in a research note issued to investors on Friday. The brokerage issued a sell rating on the bank’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on FBMS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered shares of First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.75.

First Bancshares Price Performance

NASDAQ FBMS opened at $36.05 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23 and a beta of 0.94. 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 has a 12-month low of $22.96 and a 12-month high of $39.08.

Institutional Trading of First Bancshares

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 4.6% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 19,503 shares of the bank’s stock worth $499,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in First Bancshares by 50.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 73.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP increased its stake 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 worth $314,000 after acquiring an additional 1,476 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 11.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 16,751 shares of the bank’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 1,711 shares during 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.