Stephens Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for SouthState Bank (NYSE:SSB) Stock

Key Points

• Stephens raised SouthState Bank’s price target from $116 to $119 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying 12.56% potential upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $118.77, despite one recent downgrade to “sell.”
• SouthState Bank recently reported quarterly EPS of $2.30, below the $2.40 consensus estimate, while insiders sold approximately $3.8 million of shares over the past three months.

SouthState Bank (NYSE:SSB - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by research analysts at Stephens from $116.00 to $119.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Stephens's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 12.56% from the company's previous close.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of SouthState Bank from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday. Citigroup increased their target price on SouthState Bank from $115.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on SouthState Bank from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Fundamental Research set a $120.00 price target on SouthState Bank in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on SouthState Bank from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $118.77.

SouthState Bank Stock Up 0.2%

SouthState Bank stock opened at $105.73 on Monday. SouthState Bank has a twelve month low of $84.47 and a twelve month high of $112.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $10.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 0.78. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $103.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.93.

SouthState Bank (NYSE:SSB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $2.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by ($0.10). SouthState Bank had a net margin of 24.63% and a return on equity of 10.23%. The business had revenue of $685.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $691.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.58 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that SouthState Bank will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SouthState Bank news, CFO William Matthews sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.93, for a total value of $435,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 40,568 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,419,072.24. This represents a 8.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David R. Brooks sold 24,650 shares of SouthState Bank stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $2,711,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,900 shares in the company, valued at $869,000. This trade represents a 75.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 34,831 shares of company stock valued at $3,814,274. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of SouthState Bank

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SSB. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in SouthState Bank during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of SouthState Bank by 100.0% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 420 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of SouthState Bank during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of SouthState Bank during the 1st quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in shares of SouthState Bank during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $65,000. Institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

SouthState Bank Company Profile

SouthState Bank is a regional banking institution and the principal banking subsidiary of SouthState Corporation NYSE: SSB. The bank provides financial services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer and commercial loans, residential mortgages, credit cards and online and mobile banking.

SouthState also offers business banking and treasury-management services, commercial real estate lending, equipment financing, wealth management and investment services.

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