The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the four brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $35.50.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on FBMS. Janney Montgomery Scott cut shares of First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of First Bancshares in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of First Bancshares from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $31.00 to $40.00 in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Hovde Group increased their target price on shares of First Bancshares from $29.00 to $32.50 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Bancshares

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FBMS. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in First Bancshares by 4.6% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 19,503 shares of the bank’s stock worth $499,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in First Bancshares by 50.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,076 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its position in First Bancshares by 73.2% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 72,262 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,877,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,797 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 1,332 shares during the last quarter. 69.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Bancshares Price Performance

FBMS opened at $36.37 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.77. First Bancshares has a 52-week low of $22.96 and a 52-week high of $38.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.46 and a beta of 0.91.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.25%.

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.