The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) Holdings Decreased by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its position in The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS - Free Report) by 25.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 389,722 shares of the bank's stock after selling 133,016 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 1.25% of First Bancshares worth $11,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of First Bancshares by 0.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,530,263 shares of the bank's stock valued at $41,271,000 after acquiring an additional 12,212 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of First Bancshares by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,115,691 shares of the bank's stock valued at $32,724,000 after purchasing an additional 106,088 shares during the period. North Reef Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of First Bancshares by 0.8% in the third quarter. North Reef Capital Management LP now owns 1,106,781 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,850,000 after acquiring an additional 8,945 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC boosted its position in First Bancshares by 1.8% during the third quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC now owns 340,112 shares of the bank's stock worth $9,173,000 after purchasing an additional 6,011 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of First Bancshares by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 224,195 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,047,000 after buying an additional 8,642 shares in the last quarter. 69.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

First Bancshares Price Performance

FBMS stock traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $23.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 142,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 158,307. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company's 50 day moving average is $24.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.77. The First Bancshares, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $22.96 and a fifty-two week high of $32.06. The stock has a market cap of $746.78 million, a PE ratio of 9.49 and a beta of 0.92.

First Bancshares (NASDAQ:FBMS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 29th. The bank reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $104.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $69.30 million. First Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 20.00%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that The First Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.45 EPS for the current year.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 6th. First Bancshares's payout ratio is currently 39.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Hovde Group reduced their price target on shares of First Bancshares from $29.50 to $28.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. StockNews.com downgraded First Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, TheStreet lowered First Bancshares from a "b-" rating to a "c+" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.00.

First Bancshares Profile

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.