AlphaQuest LLC Sells 15,511 Shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. $SFBS

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC reduced its stake in ServisFirst Bancshares by 56.4%, selling 15,511 shares and holding 11,999 shares worth approximately $991,000.
• ServisFirst Bancshares reported $1.21 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.20, while revenues were below estimates at $132.11 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.335, with a 1.5% yield, and has a modest payout ratio of 29.32%.

AlphaQuest LLC reduced its stake in ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Free Report) by 56.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,999 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 15,511 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares were worth $991,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SFBS. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the first quarter valued at approximately $171,000. KBC Group NV increased its stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 6.0% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,466 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $204,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Finally, GTS Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $225,000. 67.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ServisFirst Bancshares Stock Up 0.4%

ServisFirst Bancshares stock traded up $0.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $88.70. The company had a trading volume of 35,411 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,537. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $81.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.09. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.48 and a 12 month high of $101.37. The company has a market capitalization of $4.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.41 and a beta of 0.85.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.01. ServisFirst Bancshares had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 24.62%.The business had revenue of $132.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.26 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ServisFirst Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st were issued a $0.335 dividend. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 1st. ServisFirst Bancshares's payout ratio is 29.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ServisFirst Bancshares news, CEO Thomas A. Broughton sold 22,206 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.99, for a total value of $1,953,905.94. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 592,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $52,141,818.12. The trade was a 3.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 6.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Piper Sandler upped their price target on ServisFirst Bancshares from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $90.50.

About ServisFirst Bancshares

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for ServisFirst Bank that provides various banking services to individual and corporate customers. It accepts demand, time, savings, and other deposits; checking, money market, and IRA accounts; and certificates of deposit. The company's loan products include commercial lending products, including seasonal, bridge, and term loans for working capital, expansion of the business, acquisition of property, and plant and equipment, as well as commercial lines of credit; commercial real estate loans, construction and development loans, and residential real estate loans; and consumer loans, such as home equity loans, vehicle financing, loans secured by deposits, and secured and unsecured personal loans.