Leighton M. Cubbage Sells 780 Shares of Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) Stock

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST - Get Free Report) Director Leighton M. Cubbage sold 780 shares of Southern First Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $21,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 66,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,819,180. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ:SFST traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $27.50. 11,172 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 20,942. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.09 and a 200 day moving average of $31.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.86 and a twelve month high of $39.36. The company has a market capitalization of $224.40 million, a P/E ratio of 16.77 and a beta of 0.82.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The bank reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.07). Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 4.30% and a net margin of 6.69%. The company had revenue of $21.31 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.38 million. On average, analysts forecast that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 1.75 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd.

Institutional Trading of Southern First Bancshares

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strs Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 19,100 shares of the bank's stock valued at $514,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp acquired a new stake in Southern First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth about $809,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 212.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 32,479 shares of the bank's stock valued at $875,000 after buying an additional 22,070 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 19,140 shares of the bank's stock valued at $516,000 after buying an additional 496 shares during the period. Finally, ELCO Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Southern First Bancshares during the third quarter worth about $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.00% of the company's stock.

About Southern First Bancshares

Southern First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Southern First Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage loans to the general public in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. The company accepts various deposit products that include checking accounts, commercial checking accounts, and savings accounts, as well as other time deposits, including daily money market accounts and long-term certificates of deposit.