Northern Trust Corp Buys 259,557 Shares of SouthState Co. $SSB

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in SouthState Co. by 23.3%, now owning approximately 1.35% of the company, valued at around $127.28 million.
• SouthState recently reported earnings of $2.30 per share, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.98, with revenue totaling $840.50 million for the quarter.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, up from the previous $0.54, which results in an annualized yield of 2.4%.

Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB - Free Report) by 23.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,371,315 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 259,557 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned 1.35% of SouthState worth $127,285,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SSB. Bank of Montreal Can bought a new position in SouthState during the fourth quarter valued at about $213,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in SouthState in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,682,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of SouthState by 104.4% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,072 shares of the bank's stock valued at $405,000 after acquiring an additional 2,080 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in shares of SouthState by 384.9% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 33,706 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,387,000 after purchasing an additional 26,755 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. raised its holdings in shares of SouthState by 42.7% in the 4th quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 29,348 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,920,000 after purchasing an additional 8,781 shares during the period. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on SouthState in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their target price on SouthState from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $117.00 price target (up previously from $113.00) on shares of SouthState in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on SouthState from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of SouthState from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $115.27.

SouthState Price Performance

SSB traded up $0.02 during trading on Thursday, reaching $101.78. 237,422 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 916,947. SouthState Co. has a 12-month low of $77.74 and a 12-month high of $114.26. The company's 50-day moving average is $95.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $10.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.79.

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

SouthState Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at SouthState

In other news, Director G Stacy Smith purchased 2,500 shares of SouthState stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $92.30 per share, for a total transaction of $230,750.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 39,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,650,095.80. This trade represents a 6.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Janet P. Froetscher acquired 3,338 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $97.31 per share, for a total transaction of $324,820.78. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,294 shares of the company's stock, valued at $807,089.14. This represents a 67.35% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 8,338 shares of company stock valued at $786,321 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

SouthState Company Profile

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.