Wasatch Advisors LP Cuts Stock Holdings in ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS)

Wasatch Advisors LP lowered its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:SFBS - Free Report) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 633,011 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 75,296 shares during the quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP owned 1.16% of ServisFirst Bancshares worth $53,641,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,714,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $484,249,000 after purchasing an additional 25,956 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 2.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,157,350 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $93,126,000 after purchasing an additional 23,555 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,053,473 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $89,277,000 after purchasing an additional 15,916 shares during the period. Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 947,367 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $80,280,000 after buying an additional 112,521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of ServisFirst Bancshares by 106.4% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 857,735 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $72,684,000 after buying an additional 442,225 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.31% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at ServisFirst Bancshares

In other ServisFirst Bancshares news, Director Christopher J. Mettler sold 18,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now owns 17,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,546,224.48. This represents a 50.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 7.40% of the company's stock.

ServisFirst Bancshares Price Performance

Shares of SFBS traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $69.72. The stock had a trading volume of 311,257 shares, compared to its average volume of 224,072. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. ServisFirst Bancshares, Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.43 and a 12 month high of $101.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a PE ratio of 16.76 and a beta of 0.89. The company's 50-day moving average is $81.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.16.

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

ServisFirst Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a dividend of $0.335 per share. This represents a $1.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. ServisFirst Bancshares's payout ratio is presently 32.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded ServisFirst Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 5th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of ServisFirst Bancshares from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock 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.