Carlson Capital L.P. Makes New $408,000 Investment in SouthState Co. $SSB

Key Points

• Carlson Capital L.P. has invested $408,000 in SouthState Co. by acquiring 4,400 shares, making it the firm's 29th largest position, accounting for approximately 0.2% of its portfolio.
• Insider transactions revealed Director Janet P. Froetscher significantly increased their stake by purchasing 3,338 shares at $97.31, while Daniel E. Bockhorst sold 5,000 shares at $99.60, reducing his position by 13.59%.
• SouthState recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.54 to $0.60 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.4% and a payout ratio of 35.77%.

Carlson Capital L.P. acquired a new position in shares of SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 4,400 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $408,000. SouthState comprises about 0.2% of Carlson Capital L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of SouthState in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of SouthState by 577.4% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 569 shares of the bank's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of SouthState by 181.7% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 586 shares of the bank's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of SouthState by 81.5% in the 1st quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC now owns 688 shares of the bank's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 309 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of SouthState by 1,103.4% in the 1st quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 698 shares of the bank's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 640 shares during the period. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SouthState Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SSB traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $102.04. The company had a trading volume of 564,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 919,112. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. SouthState Co. has a twelve month low of $77.74 and a twelve month high of $114.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $92.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66 and a beta of 0.79.

SouthState (NASDAQ:SSB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $2.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.32. SouthState had a net margin of 22.38% and a return on equity of 9.62%. The firm had revenue of $840.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $645.12 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that SouthState Co. will post 8.12 earnings per share for the current year.

SouthState Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a positive change from SouthState's previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. SouthState's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SSB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of SouthState from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of SouthState from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $117.00 target price (up previously from $113.00) on shares of SouthState in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Hovde Group raised their target price on shares of SouthState from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of SouthState in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, SouthState currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $115.27.

Insider Activity at SouthState

In other SouthState news, Director G Stacy Smith bought 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $92.30 per share, for a total transaction of $230,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 39,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,650,095.80. The trade was a 6.75% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel E. Bockhorst sold 5,000 shares of SouthState stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.60, for a total transaction of $498,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 31,785 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,165,786. The trade was a 13.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders purchased 8,338 shares of company stock worth $786,321 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

About SouthState

SouthState Corporation operates as the bank holding company for SouthState Bank, National Association that provides a range of banking services and products to individuals and companies. It offers checking accounts, savings deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, certificates of deposits, money market accounts, and other time deposits, as well as bond accounting, asset/liability consulting related activities, and other clearing and corporate checking account services.