The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) Shares Sold by AlphaQuest LLC

AlphaQuest LLC decreased its position in shares of The First Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:FBMS) by 24.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,130 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 4,616 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in First Bancshares were worth $495,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FBMS. FMR LLC raised its holdings in First Bancshares by 50.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,194 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 1,076 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $203,000. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $236,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in First Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at about $307,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in First Bancshares in the 3rd quarter valued at about $308,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.95% of the company’s stock.

First Bancshares Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FBMS opened at $33.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 13.67 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $36.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.88. The First Bancshares, Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.96 and a 1 year high of $39.21.

First Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. First Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on FBMS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of First Bancshares from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of First Bancshares in a report on Thursday. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock.

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.