Azora Capital LP Takes Position in Southern First Bancshares, Inc. $SFST

Azora Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Southern First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFST) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 12,526 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $645,000. Azora Capital LP owned about 0.15% of Southern First Bancshares as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 40.2% in the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 666 shares of the bank’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2.9% in the second quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 9,458 shares of the bank’s stock worth $360,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 28.7% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,380 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern First Bancshares in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of Southern First Bancshares by 2.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 34,910 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,149,000 after buying an additional 890 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.00% of the company’s stock.

Southern First Bancshares Trading Down 1.5%

Southern First Bancshares stock opened at $57.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $548.21 million, a P/E ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. Southern First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $35.15 and a 1 year high of $62.38. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $57.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.67.

Southern First Bancshares (NASDAQ:SFST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The bank reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.01). Southern First Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.65% and a net margin of 15.21%.The business had revenue of $32.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.10 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Southern First Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern First Bancshares from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Leighton M. Cubbage sold 765 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.60, for a total transaction of $46,359.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 50,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,073,329. The trade was a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 6.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Southern First Bancshares Company Profile

Southern First Bancshares is the bank holding company for Southern First Bank, a community-oriented financial institution headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company delivers a full spectrum of commercial and consumer banking services designed to meet the needs of small and midsize businesses, professionals, and individual customers. Southern First Bancshares operates under a relationship-driven model, emphasizing personalized service and local decision–making.

The company’s core offerings include deposit products such as checking, savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit, alongside an array of lending solutions covering commercial real estate, construction, equipment financing and small business administration (SBA) loans.