Franklin Resources Inc. Has $2.14 Million Stock Position in ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Free Report) by 83.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,270 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 11,495 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares were worth $2,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 552.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 24,280 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,953,000 after purchasing an additional 20,559 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in ServisFirst Bancshares in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $208,000. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in ServisFirst Bancshares by 48.8% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 76,113 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,123,000 after buying an additional 24,954 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 2.4% in the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 5,569 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares by 150.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 100,688 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,101,000 after acquiring an additional 60,517 shares during the last quarter. 67.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Insider Activity at ServisFirst Bancshares

In other news, Director Christopher J. Mettler sold 18,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.68, for a total transaction of $1,596,240.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,546,224.48. This trade represents a 50.80 % 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 hyperlink. 7.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

ServisFirst Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SFBS traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $69.32. The stock had a trading volume of 246,456 shares, compared to its average volume of 222,491. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. has a twelve month low of $58.11 and a twelve month high of $101.37. The company has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66 and a beta of 0.89. The business's fifty day moving average is $83.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

ServisFirst Bancshares (NYSE:SFBS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. ServisFirst Bancshares had a return on equity of 14.81% and a net margin of 23.16%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. will post 5.17 EPS for the current year.

ServisFirst Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.335 per share. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. ServisFirst Bancshares's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded ServisFirst Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on ServisFirst Bancshares from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

About ServisFirst Bancshares

ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for ServisFirst Bank that provides various banking services to individual and corporate customers. It accepts demand, time, savings, and other deposits; checking, money market, and IRA accounts; and certificates of deposit. The company's loan products include commercial lending products, including seasonal, bridge, and term loans for working capital, expansion of the business, acquisition of property, and plant and equipment, as well as commercial lines of credit; commercial real estate loans, construction and development loans, and residential real estate loans; and consumer loans, such as home equity loans, vehicle financing, loans secured by deposits, and secured and unsecured personal loans.