First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Stock Price Down 3.5%

The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS - Get Free Report) shares dropped 3.5% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $24.34 and last traded at $24.34. Approximately 2,258 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 99% from the average daily volume of 160,430 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.21.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FBMS has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of First Bancshares in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $34.00 price objective on shares of First Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. TheStreet cut shares of First Bancshares from a "b-" rating to a "c+" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of First Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $32.00.

First Bancshares Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $24.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $789.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.58 and a beta of 0.88.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $60.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.10 million. First Bancshares had a net margin of 19.47% and a return on equity of 10.60%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FBMS. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in First Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Amalgamated Bank lifted its stake in First Bancshares by 17.2% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,966 shares of the bank's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 436 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $87,000. ELCO Management Co. LLC bought a new position in First Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in First Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Institutional investors own 69.95% of the company's stock.

First Bancshares Company Profile

The First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The First Bank that provides general commercial and retail banking services. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Retail Bank, Mortgage Banking Division, and Holding Company. It offers deposit services, including checking, NOW, and savings accounts; other time deposits, such as daily money market accounts and longer-term certificates of deposit; and individual retirement and health savings accounts.