First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) Now Covered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS) in a research note issued on Thursday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the bank’s stock.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

First Bancshares Stock Up 4.5 %

FBMS opened at $34.33 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07 and a beta of 0.92. First Bancshares has a twelve month low of $22.96 and a twelve month high of $39.21. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $35.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.87.

Institutional Trading of First Bancshares

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in First Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in First Bancshares by 864.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 974 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in First Bancshares by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,102 shares of the bank’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 50.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock worth $103,000 after buying an additional 1,076 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.