Raymond James Financial Inc. Sells 18,068 Shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. $SFBS

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares by 7.8%, selling 18,068 shares and holding a total of 213,684 shares valued at approximately $17.65 million.
• ServisFirst Bancshares reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.21, slightly beating the consensus estimate of $1.20, though its revenue of $132.11 million was below expectations of $140.26 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.335 per share, with a current annualized dividend yield of 1.5% and a dividend payout ratio of 29.32%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. lowered its stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Free Report) by 7.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 213,684 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 18,068 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.39% of ServisFirst Bancshares worth $17,650,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares by 1.4% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 31,689 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,618,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the period. Watchman Group Inc. purchased a new stake in ServisFirst Bancshares in the first quarter worth about $2,521,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares by 27.4% in the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 159,253 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,154,000 after purchasing an additional 34,210 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance purchased a new stake in ServisFirst Bancshares in the first quarter worth about $430,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in ServisFirst Bancshares in the first quarter worth about $12,726,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Thomas A. Broughton sold 22,206 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.99, for a total transaction of $1,953,905.94. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 592,588 shares in the company, valued at $52,141,818.12. This represents a 3.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 6.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

ServisFirst Bancshares Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE SFBS traded down $0.63 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $87.52. The stock had a trading volume of 258,880 shares, compared to its average volume of 193,880. The business's 50 day moving average is $82.03 and its 200-day moving average is $78.98. The company has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.15 and a beta of 0.89. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $66.48 and a 52 week high of $101.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $132.11 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.26 million. ServisFirst Bancshares had a net margin of 24.62% and a return on equity of 15.47%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

ServisFirst Bancshares Announces Dividend

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

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.