Versor Investments LP Purchases New Stake in The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS)

Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 51,845 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,666,000. Versor Investments LP owned approximately 0.17% of First Bancshares as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Bancshares in the second quarter worth $36,000. CWM LLC raised its position in First Bancshares by 3,387.8% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,709 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,660 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of First Bancshares in the second quarter worth about $89,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Bancshares in the first quarter valued at about $103,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in shares of First Bancshares by 652.7% in the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 7,474 shares of the bank's stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 6,481 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.95% of the company's stock.

First Bancshares Stock Up 2.9 %

FBMS traded up $1.06 during trading on Monday, hitting $37.62. The company had a trading volume of 160,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 194,039. The First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1-year low of $22.96 and a 1-year high of $38.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.97 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50-day moving average of $32.79 and a 200-day moving average of $29.33.

First Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. First Bancshares's payout ratio is 45.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on FBMS shares. Janney Montgomery Scott cut First Bancshares from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Hovde Group raised their price target on shares of First Bancshares from $29.00 to $32.50 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of First Bancshares in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a "sell" rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded First Bancshares from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the company from $31.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.50.

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.