SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB) Stake Raised by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB - Free Report) by 33.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,877 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 3,724 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in SouthState were worth $1,480,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of SSB. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of SouthState by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,161 shares of the bank's stock valued at $113,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in SouthState in the fourth quarter worth about $137,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in SouthState by 22,412.5% in the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,801 shares of the bank's stock worth $179,000 after acquiring an additional 1,793 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its stake in SouthState by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 1,840 shares of the bank's stock valued at $183,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of SouthState by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,324 shares of the bank's stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

SouthState Price Performance

NASDAQ SSB traded up $0.54 on Thursday, reaching $94.49. 62,915 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 557,233. SouthState Co. has a 12 month low of $70.68 and a 12 month high of $114.27. The company has a market cap of $9.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.59 and a beta of 0.68. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $99.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

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SouthState Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. SouthState's payout ratio is currently 31.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director G Stacy Smith acquired 3,100 shares of SouthState 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 in the company, valued at $3,442,514.40. The trade was a 9.20 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Janet P. Froetscher purchased 2,717 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $92.02 per share, with a total value of $250,018.34. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,689 shares in the company, valued at $431,481.78. This trade represents a 137.78 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group initiated coverage on SouthState in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $132.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup upgraded SouthState from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $106.00 to $128.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of SouthState in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.44.

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.