First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $33.79, but opened at $32.06. First Bancshares shares last traded at $33.08, with a volume of 24,502 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on FBMS shares. Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded shares of First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Hovde Group increased their price objective on shares of First Bancshares from $29.00 to $32.50 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of First Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $31.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on First Bancshares in a report on Sunday, October 20th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.50.

First Bancshares Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $32.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.53. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10 and a beta of 0.92.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.01. First Bancshares had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 8.82%. The firm had revenue of $71.26 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.20 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.68%.

Institutional Trading of First Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of First Bancshares by 11.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 16,751 shares of the bank’s stock worth $530,000 after acquiring an additional 1,711 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in First Bancshares by 73.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the bank’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 1,251 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in First Bancshares by 54.3% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 19,133 shares of the bank’s stock worth $615,000 after purchasing an additional 6,731 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its stake in First Bancshares by 310.0% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 91,591 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,380,000 after purchasing an additional 69,254 shares during the period. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 45.7% in the second quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 25,986 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $675,000 after purchasing an additional 8,145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.95% of the company’s stock.

About First Bancshares

The First Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for The First Bank that provides general commercial and retail banking services. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Retail Bank, Mortgage Banking Division, and Holding Company. It offers deposit services, including checking, NOW, and savings accounts; other time deposits, such as daily money market accounts and longer-term certificates of deposit; and individual retirement and health savings accounts.