EAM Global Investors LLC Trims Stake in SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB)

EAM Global Investors LLC decreased its holdings in SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB - Free Report) by 17.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,163 shares of the bank's stock after selling 7,639 shares during the quarter. EAM Global Investors LLC's holdings in SouthState were worth $3,697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SSB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in SouthState by 2.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 408,894 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,736,000 after purchasing an additional 9,863 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of SouthState in the 4th quarter worth about $1,008,000. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in SouthState by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 11,153 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 787 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in SouthState during the third quarter worth about $265,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in SouthState by 74.4% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 36,501 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,631,000 after purchasing an additional 15,573 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at SouthState

In related news, Director G Stacy Smith acquired 3,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $93.60 per share, with a total value of $290,160.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,779 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,442,514.40. This trade represents a 9.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO William E. V. Matthews sold 6,531 shares of SouthState stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.29, for a total transaction of $707,241.99. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 34,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,693,447.03. The trade was a 16.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SSB shares. Citigroup upgraded SouthState from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $106.00 to $128.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Raymond James raised SouthState from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $120.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays reduced their price target on SouthState from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of SouthState in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $117.90.

SouthState Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SSB traded up $0.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $84.82. 626,967 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 620,290. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $92.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.19. SouthState Co. has a 52-week low of $70.68 and a 52-week high of $114.27. The company has a market cap of $8.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.65.

SouthState Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. SouthState's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.03%.

SouthState Profile

SouthState Corporation operates as the bank holding company for SouthState Bank, National Association that provides a range of banking services and products to individuals and companies. It offers checking accounts, savings deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, certificates of deposits, money market accounts, and other time deposits, as well as bond accounting, asset/liability consulting related activities, and other clearing and corporate checking account services.