Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 11,350 Shares of SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB - Free Report) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 100,598 shares of the bank's stock after selling 11,350 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned 0.13% of SouthState worth $10,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in SouthState by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,913,615 shares of the bank's stock valued at $192,531,000 after purchasing an additional 93,312 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in SouthState by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,111,758 shares of the bank's stock worth $110,598,000 after buying an additional 95,841 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in SouthState by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,039,891 shares of the bank's stock worth $103,448,000 after buying an additional 52,042 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of SouthState by 19.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 851,455 shares of the bank's stock valued at $84,703,000 after buying an additional 139,602 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of SouthState by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 842,498 shares of the bank's stock valued at $83,812,000 after buying an additional 37,796 shares during the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SouthState Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of SouthState stock traded down $0.85 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $90.57. 542,095 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 648,417. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 0.75. SouthState Co. has a 1-year low of $70.68 and a 1-year high of $114.27. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $88.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

SouthState Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. SouthState's payout ratio is presently 34.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other SouthState news, CAO Sara Arana sold 1,991 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total transaction of $200,652.98. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,787 shares in the company, valued at $482,433.86. This trade represents a 29.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director G Stacy Smith acquired 3,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $93.60 per share, for a total transaction of $290,160.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 36,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,442,514.40. This trade represents a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SSB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on SouthState from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on SouthState from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on SouthState in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $106.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upgraded SouthState from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $106.00 to $128.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on SouthState from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $116.90.

SouthState 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.