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

Equities research analysts at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) in a research note issued to investors on Monday. The firm set a “sell” rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on FBMS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.17.

First Bancshares Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ FBMS opened at $34.96 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.92. First Bancshares has a 12 month low of $22.96 and a 12 month high of $39.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.82 and a beta of 0.93.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Bancshares

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBMS. Principal Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Bancshares in the third quarter worth about $846,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in First Bancshares by 16.3% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 119,512 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,105,000 after buying an additional 16,723 shares during the period. Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,054,000. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. bought a new stake in First Bancshares during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,548,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares during the third quarter worth $1,666,000. 69.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About First Bancshares

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.