Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Acquires 30,000 Shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. $SFBS

Key Points

• Ceredex Value Advisors LLC increased its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. by 21.5%, owning 169,550 shares valued at approximately $14.01 million.
• ServisFirst Bancshares recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.335 per share, yielding 1.5% based on an annualized basis.
• Analysts have set a new average price target of $90.50 for ServisFirst Bancshares, with a consensus rating of "Hold".

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Free Report) by 21.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 169,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 30,000 shares during the quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.31% of ServisFirst Bancshares worth $14,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SFBS. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the 1st quarter valued at $171,000. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,466 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $219,000. Finally, GTS Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $225,000. 67.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ServisFirst Bancshares Price Performance

SFBS stock traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $88.30. 174,436 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 211,863. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.32 and a beta of 0.85. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.48 and a 52-week high of $101.37. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $81.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.99.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $132.11 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.26 million. ServisFirst Bancshares had a return on equity of 15.47% and a net margin of 24.62%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current 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 dividend of $0.335 per share. This represents a $1.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 1st. ServisFirst Bancshares's payout ratio is presently 29.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ServisFirst Bancshares news, CEO Thomas A. Broughton sold 22,206 shares of ServisFirst Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.99, for a total transaction of $1,953,905.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 592,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at $52,141,818.12. The trade was a 3.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 6.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

ServisFirst Bancshares Company Profile

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.