The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) Shares Purchased by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS - Free Report) by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 898,647 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 37,167 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 2.88% of First Bancshares worth $28,874,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in First Bancshares by 3,387.8% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,709 shares of the bank's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 1,660 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in First Bancshares during the second quarter worth $89,000. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in First Bancshares during the third quarter worth $203,000. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System acquired a new position in First Bancshares during the second quarter worth $216,000. 69.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Bancshares Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of First Bancshares stock traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $37.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 70,357 shares, compared to its average volume of 186,938. The First Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $22.96 and a twelve month high of $39.08. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $34.41 and a 200-day moving average of $30.80. The stock has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84.

First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. First Bancshares's payout ratio is 45.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FBMS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Janney Montgomery Scott lowered First Bancshares from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on First Bancshares in a research note on Friday, November 29th. They issued a "sell" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, First Bancshares has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $37.17.

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.