First Manhattan CO. LLC. Decreases Stake in Primis Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:FRST)

First Manhattan CO. LLC. lessened its holdings in Primis Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:FRST - Free Report) by 25.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 157,781 shares of the company's stock after selling 55,000 shares during the quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. owned about 0.64% of Primis Financial worth $1,840,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Primis Financial by 94.3% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 70,869 shares of the company's stock worth $826,000 after buying an additional 34,394 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Primis Financial by 243.8% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 27,441 shares of the company's stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 19,460 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Primis Financial by 120.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 71,112 shares of the company's stock worth $866,000 after purchasing an additional 38,792 shares during the period. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp grew its stake in shares of Primis Financial by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp now owns 1,051,728 shares of the company's stock worth $12,263,000 after purchasing an additional 106,721 shares during the period. Finally, PL Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Primis Financial by 1,066.0% during the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,541,310 shares of the company's stock worth $64,612,000 after purchasing an additional 5,066,069 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.96% of the company's stock.

Primis Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FRST traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $9.47. 48,781 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 73,776. Primis Financial Corp. has a twelve month low of $7.59 and a twelve month high of $13.52. The firm has a market cap of $234.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.57 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.65.

Primis Financial (NASDAQ:FRST - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.12). Primis Financial had a negative net margin of 2.97% and a negative return on equity of 2.05%. The business had revenue of $32.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.90 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Primis Financial Corp. will post 1.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Primis Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.22%. Primis Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -137.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Maxim Group began coverage on shares of Primis Financial in a research note on Monday. They set a "buy" rating and a $1.00 price objective on the stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John Fitzgerald Biagas acquired 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $9.97 per share, for a total transaction of $99,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 88,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $882,035.93. This trade represents a 12.74% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 10.89% of the company's stock.

About Primis Financial

Primis Financial Corp. operates as the bank holding company for Primis Bank that provides a range of financial services to individuals and small and medium sized businesses in the United States. Its deposit products include checking, NOW, savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposits.