Raymond James Initiates Coverage on Southside Bancshares (NASDAQ:SBSI)

Research analysts at Raymond James began coverage on shares of Southside Bancshares (NASDAQ:SBSI) in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage set a “market perform” rating on the bank’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Southside Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th.

Southside Bancshares Stock Up 2.4 %

Southside Bancshares stock opened at $32.16 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Southside Bancshares has a 1-year low of $25.30 and a 1-year high of $38.00. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $33.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.83. The company has a market capitalization of $974.77 million, a P/E ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 0.58.

Southside Bancshares (NASDAQ:SBSI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $113.87 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $68.25 million. Southside Bancshares had a net margin of 18.94% and a return on equity of 10.64%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Southside Bancshares will post 2.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Suni M. Davis sold 2,220 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total transaction of $79,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,202 shares in the company, valued at $331,272. The trade was a 19.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Lee R. Gibson sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.74, for a total value of $121,242.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 57,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,104,173.28. This represents a 5.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southside Bancshares

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Southside Bancshares by 61.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,337 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares during the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Southside Bancshares during the third quarter worth about $83,000. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in Southside Bancshares by 190.1% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 2,884 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 1,890 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its holdings in Southside Bancshares by 172.6% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 3,176 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 2,011 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Southside Bancshares by 226.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,432 shares of the bank’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 2,382 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 55.70% of the company’s stock.

About Southside Bancshares

Southside Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Southside Bank that provides a range of financial services to individuals, businesses, municipal entities, and nonprofit organizations. Its deposit products include savings, money market, and interest and noninterest bearing checking accounts, as well as certificates of deposits.