ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. $SFBS Holdings Reduced by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in ServisFirst Bancshares by 12.3%, now owning approximately 0.06% of the company, valued at $2.93 million.
• The company's CEO, Thomas A. Broughton, sold 22,206 shares at an average price of $87.99, resulting in a total value of about $1.95 million and a 3.61% decrease in his position.
• ServisFirst Bancshares is currently rated as a "Hold" by analysts, with a revised target price of $90.00, reflecting a consensus outlook for stable performance.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Free Report) by 12.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,457 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,981 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of ServisFirst Bancshares worth $2,929,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KBC Group NV grew its holdings 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 worth $204,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Arcus Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in ServisFirst Bancshares by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Arcus Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $744,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Precision Wealth Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 5.0% during the first quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 7,709 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. 67.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

ServisFirst Bancshares Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of SFBS traded down $0.46 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $87.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 105,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,746. The company has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.98. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $66.48 and a twelve month high of $101.37.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.26 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ServisFirst Bancshares Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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