Southern First Bancshares (SFST) Stock Price, News & Analysis

Company Overview

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. is the bank holding company for Southern First Bank, a community-focused financial institution headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. Through its subsidiary bank, the company provides a full range of commercial and consumer banking services to individuals, small and medium-sized businesses, and professional clients. Southern First Bancshares operates as a single-bank holding company under Federal Reserve oversight, emphasizing personalized service, local decision-making, and relationship banking.

The company’s core business activities include accepting a variety of deposit accounts such as checking, savings, money market, and certificate of deposit products. On the lending side, Southern First Bancshares offers commercial real estate, construction, equipment financing, and lines of credit tailored to the needs of local enterprises. For individual customers, the bank provides mortgage lending, home equity financing, and consumer installment loans. Wealth management and trust services are also available through dedicated teams, delivering investment management, retirement planning, fiduciary administration, and estate settlement solutions.

Geographically, Southern First Bancshares serves communities across upstate South Carolina and the Charlotte metropolitan area in North Carolina. Its branch network and ATMs are concentrated in Greenville, Spartanburg, and surrounding counties, with select locations in Mecklenburg and Gaston counties. The company’s strategy focuses on deepening market penetration in its core footprint by leveraging local market expertise, community involvement, and strategic partnerships with real estate, legal, and accounting professionals.

Founded in 1999 and headquartered on Main Street in downtown Greenville, Southern First Bancshares has grown through organic expansion and selective de novo branch openings. The company is led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert R. Brooks Jr., supported by a senior management team with extensive regional banking experience. This leadership group is committed to maintaining strong capital levels, prudent risk management practices, and a customer-centric culture that reflects the institution’s long-standing community banking heritage.

Key Stats

• Today's Range: $38.46 to $38.75
• 50-Day Range: $34.75 to $39.91
• 52-Week Range: $29.14 to $45.91
• Volume: 4,515 shs
• Average Volume: 18,307 shs
• Market Capitalization: $315.45 million
• P/E Ratio: 17.09
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Price Target: $43.00
• Consensus Rating: Strong Buy

Southern First Bancshares Stock Analysis - MarketRank™

Southern First Bancshares scored higher than 51% of companies evaluated by MarketBeat, and ranked 763rd out of 933 stocks in the finance sector. Scores are calculated by averaging available category scores, with extra weight given to analysis and valuation.

Analyst's Opinion

• Score: 1.0 / 5
• Analyst Rating: Strong Buy

Amount of Analyst Coverage

Southern First Bancshares has only been the subject of 1 research reports in the past 90 days.

Earnings and Valuation

• Score: 3.1 / 5
• Proj. Earnings Growth: 12.43%

Earnings Growth

Earnings for Southern First Bancshares are expected to grow by 12.43% in the coming year, from $1.85 to $2.08 per share.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. the Market

The P/E ratio of Southern First Bancshares is 17.05, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the market average P/E ratio of about 26.65.

Price to Earnings Ratio vs. Sector

The P/E ratio of Southern First Bancshares is 17.05, which means that it is trading at a less expensive P/E ratio than the Finance sector average P/E ratio of about 19.06.

Price to Book Value per Share Ratio

Southern First Bancshares has a P/B Ratio of 0.95. P/B Ratios below 1 indicate that a company could be undervalued with respect to its assets and liabilities.

Short Interest

• Score: 4.0 / 5
• Short Interest Level: Healthy

Percentage of Shares Shorted

0.74% of the float of Southern First Bancshares has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Southern First Bancshares has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 3.2, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Southern First Bancshares has recently decreased by 4.90%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving.

Dividend

• Score: 0.0 / 5
• Dividend Strength: N/A

Dividend Yield

Southern First Bancshares does not currently pay a dividend.

Dividend Growth

Southern First Bancshares does not have a long track record of dividend growth.

Sustainability and ESG

• Score: N/A
• Environmental Score: N/A

Percentage of Shares Shorted

0.74% of the float of Southern First Bancshares has been sold short.

Short Interest Ratio / Days to Cover

Southern First Bancshares has a short interest ratio ("days to cover") of 3.2, which is generally considered an acceptable ratio of short interest to trading volume.

Change versus previous month

Short interest in Southern First Bancshares has recently decreased by 4.90%, indicating that investor sentiment is improving.

News and Social Media

• Score: 1.9 / 5
• News Sentiment: 0.37

News Sentiment

Southern First Bancshares has a news sentiment score of 0.37. This score is calculated as an average of sentiment of articles about the company over the last seven days and ranges from 2 (good news) to -2 (bad news). This is a lower news sentiment than the 0.93 average news sentiment score of Finance companies.

News Coverage This Week

MarketBeat has tracked 4 news articles for Southern First Bancshares this week, compared to 1 article on an average week.

Company Ownership

• Score: 3.3 / 5
• Insider Trading: Selling Shares

Insider Buying vs. Insider Selling

In the past three months, Southern First Bancshares insiders have sold 122.05% more of their company's stock than they have bought. Specifically, they have bought $25,305.00 in company stock and sold $56,190.00 in company stock.

Percentage Held by Insiders

Only 7.06% of the stock of Southern First Bancshares is held by insiders.

Percentage Held by Institutions

75.00% of the stock of Southern First Bancshares is held by institutions. High institutional ownership can be a signal of strong market trust in this company.

SFST Stock Analysis - Frequently Asked Questions

How have SFST shares performed this year?

Southern First Bancshares' stock was trading at $39.75 at the beginning of 2025. Since then, SFST stock has decreased by 3.1% and is now trading at $38.53.

How were Southern First Bancshares' earnings last quarter?

Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April, 22nd. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. The bank earned $26.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.56 million. Southern First Bancshares had a trailing twelve-month return on equity of 5.57% and a net margin of 8.50%.

Who are Southern First Bancshares' major shareholders?

Southern First Bancshares' top institutional investors include Assenagon Asset Management S.A. (0.38%), SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC (0.23%), Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC (0.20%) and Sheets Smith Wealth Management (0.20%). Insiders that own company stock include R Arthur Seaver Jr, Leighton M Cubbage, David G Ellison, David Andrew Borrmann, William M Aiken III, Calvin C Hurst, Anne S Ellefson, Julie Ann Fairchild, Terry Grayson-Caprio, William Iv Maner, Ray Lattimore, Anna T Locke and Silvia T King.
View institutional ownership trends.

How do I buy shares of Southern First Bancshares?

Shares of SFST stock can be purchased through any online brokerage account. Popular online brokerages with access to the U.S. stock market include Charles Schwab, E*TRADE, Fidelity, and Vanguard Brokerage Services.

What other stocks do shareholders of Southern First Bancshares own?

Based on aggregate information from My MarketBeat watchlists, some other companies that Southern First Bancshares investors own include Waste Connections (WCN), The RMR Group (RMR), iShares Micro-Cap ETF (IWC), DiamondRock Hospitality (DRH), American Water Works (AWK), AU Optronics (AUOTY) and Triple Flag Precious Metals (TFPM).

Company Calendar

• Last Earnings: 4/22/2025
• Today: 7/16/2025
• Next Earnings (Estimated): 7/17/2025
• Fiscal Year End: 12/31/2025

Industry, Sector and Symbol

• Stock Exchange: NASDAQ
• Sector: Finance
• Industry: BANKS - SOUTHEAST
• Sub-Industry: Banking
• Current Symbol: NASDAQ:SFST
• CIK: 1090009
• Web: www.southernfirst.com
• Phone: (864) 679-9000
• Fax: 864-679-9099
• Employees: 290
• Year Founded: 1999

Price Target and Rating

• Average Price Target for Southern First Bancshares: $43.00
• High Price Target: $43.00
• Low Price Target: $43.00
• Potential Upside/Downside: +11.0%
• Consensus Rating: Strong Buy
• Rating Score (0-4): 4.00
• Research Coverage: 1 Analysts

Profitability

• EPS (Trailing Twelve Months): $2.26
• Trailing P/E Ratio: 17.14
• Forward P/E Ratio: 20.94
• P/E Growth: N/A
• Net Income: $15.53 million
• Net Margins: 8.50%
• Pretax Margin: 10.90%
• Return on Equity: 5.57%
• Return on Assets: 0.44%

Debt

• Debt-to-Equity Ratio: 0.78
• Current Ratio: 1.09
• Quick Ratio: 1.09

Sales & Book Value

• Annual Sales: $98.52 million
• Price / Sales: 3.21
• Cash Flow: $2.50 per share
• Price / Cash Flow: 15.48
• Book Value: $40.50 per share
• Price / Book: 0.96

Miscellaneous

• Outstanding Shares: 8,169,000
• Free Float: 7,592,000
• Market Cap: $316.47 million
• Optionable: Optionable
• Beta: 0.77