Empowered Funds LLC Buys 4,702 Shares of The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS)

Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 97,768 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 4,702 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in First Bancshares were worth $3,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FBMS. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of First Bancshares by 73.2% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,960 shares of the bank’s stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 1,251 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of First Bancshares by 50.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares in the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares during the third quarter worth about $203,000. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares during the third quarter worth about $236,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares during the third quarter worth about $308,000. Institutional investors own 69.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on FBMS shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com started coverage on First Bancshares in a research report on Sunday. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott cut First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, First Bancshares currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.75.

First Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ FBMS opened at $37.45 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a PE ratio of 15.35 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1-year low of $22.96 and a 1-year high of $39.21.

First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.98%.

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.