JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Holdings in Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST - Free Report) by 84.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,769 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 12,251 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.33% of Southern First Bancshares worth $1,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SFST. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its stake in Southern First Bancshares by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 15,191 shares of the bank's stock valued at $604,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 15,105 shares of the bank's stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 12,506 shares of the bank's stock valued at $497,000 after acquiring an additional 813 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 35.8% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,041 shares of the bank's stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 1,065 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 421,300 shares of the bank's stock valued at $16,747,000 after acquiring an additional 1,249 shares during the period. 75.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern First Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of SFST stock traded down $0.38 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $35.14. 5,273 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 18,371. The firm has a market capitalization of $287.02 million, a PE ratio of 18.15 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $32.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.03. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.98 and a 12 month high of $45.91.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $26.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.56 million. Southern First Bancshares had a net margin of 7.28% and a return on equity of 4.85%. On average, research analysts forecast that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

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.