ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS) Shares Cross Below 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Shares slipped below their 200-day moving average, trading as low as $40.50 versus the average of $40.85, and last changed hands at about $40.81.
• Analyst views are mixed, but the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average price target of $46.50; four analysts rate the stock Buy and one rates it Sell.
• In its latest quarter, ServisFirst reported EPS of $0.80, below the $0.83 consensus estimate, and revenue of $172.93 million, slightly under expectations.

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $40.85 and traded as low as $40.50. ServisFirst Bancshares shares last traded at $40.8130, with a volume of 422,008 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on SFBS shares. Zacks Research lowered ServisFirst Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Raymond James Financial downgraded ServisFirst Bancshares from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on ServisFirst Bancshares from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of ServisFirst Bancshares from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ServisFirst Bancshares from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $46.50.

ServisFirst Bancshares Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $40.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.02 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $172.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $173.13 million. ServisFirst Bancshares had a net margin of 32.53% and a return on equity of 17.66%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

ServisFirst Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st were issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 1st. ServisFirst Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.28%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ServisFirst Bancshares

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $670,908,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in ServisFirst Bancshares by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,133,669 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $82,565,000 after purchasing an additional 10,008 shares during the last quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in ServisFirst Bancshares during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $78,975,000. Welch Group LLC grew its position in ServisFirst Bancshares by 96.4% during the 3rd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 1,885,113 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $75,367,000 after purchasing an additional 925,380 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in ServisFirst Bancshares by 94.8% during the 3rd quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,436,928 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $57,448,000 after purchasing an additional 699,425 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 67.31% of the company's stock.

About ServisFirst Bancshares

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. Through its subsidiary, ServisFirst Bank, the company provides commercial and consumer banking services, with a focus on serving businesses, professionals and individuals. Its offerings include commercial and consumer loans, deposit accounts, treasury and cash-management services, and online and mobile banking. The bank also provides services such as wealth management and mortgage lending. Founded in 2005, ServisFirst Bank has expanded beyond Alabama into markets across the southeastern United States, including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

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