First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Trading 4.1% Higher Following Dividend Announcement

The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS)’s share price shot up 4.1% on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $33.68 and last traded at $33.68. 33,662 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 195,546 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.36.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.01%. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of First Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com started coverage on First Bancshares in a report on Sunday, October 20th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price objective on First Bancshares from $29.00 to $32.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

First Bancshares Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.19 and a beta of 0.92. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $32.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick 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 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.02. First Bancshares had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 8.82%. The firm had revenue of $104.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that The First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bancshares

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares in the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 3,387.8% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,709 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,660 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of First Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth $89,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Bancshares in the 1st quarter valued at about $103,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in shares of First Bancshares by 652.7% in the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 7,474 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $194,000 after purchasing an additional 6,481 shares during the period. 69.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.