First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Shares Gap Up Following Dividend Announcement

The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $25.28, but opened at $25.99. First Bancshares shares last traded at $25.20, with a volume of 8,282 shares traded.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.18%. First Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 39.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of First Bancshares in a report on Friday, January 26th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $34.00 price target on shares of First Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. TheStreet downgraded First Bancshares from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded First Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, First Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.00.

First Bancshares Stock Down 4.6 %

The company has a market cap of $746.16 million, a P/E ratio of 9.48 and a beta of 0.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $24.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.11). First Bancshares had a net margin of 20.00% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The business had revenue of $60.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $72.10 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that The First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Bancshares

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in shares of First Bancshares by 69.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 16,849 shares of the bank’s stock worth $454,000 after purchasing an additional 6,934 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of First Bancshares by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 61,430 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,657,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of First Bancshares by 18.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 13,388 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 2,102 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of First Bancshares during the 3rd quarter valued at $327,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of First Bancshares by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,530,263 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,271,000 after purchasing an additional 12,212 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.95% of the company’s stock.

First Bancshares Company Profile

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.