Sterling Capital Management LLC Sells 1,730 Shares of SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB)

Sterling Capital Management LLC cut its stake in shares of SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB) by 24.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,412 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,730 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in SouthState were worth $538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in SouthState during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of SouthState by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 508 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of SouthState during the 4th quarter valued at about $102,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in SouthState by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,161 shares of the bank’s stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in SouthState in the fourth quarter worth approximately $137,000. Institutional investors own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at SouthState

In other SouthState news, Director G Stacy Smith acquired 3,100 shares of SouthState stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $93.60 per share, for a total transaction of $290,160.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 36,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,442,514.40. This trade represents a 9.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Janet P. Froetscher bought 2,717 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $92.02 per share, for a total transaction of $250,018.34. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 4,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $431,481.78. This trade represents a 137.78 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

SouthState Stock Up 0.9 %

SSB stock opened at $84.82 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $93.30 and its 200-day moving average is $99.28. SouthState Co. has a twelve month low of $70.68 and a twelve month high of $114.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

SouthState Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. SouthState’s dividend payout ratio is 31.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on SSB shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of SouthState from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $106.00 to $128.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of SouthState from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on shares of SouthState in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Raymond James raised SouthState from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $120.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.90.

About SouthState

SouthState Corporation operates as the bank holding company for SouthState Bank, National Association that provides a range of banking services and products to individuals and companies. It offers checking accounts, savings deposits, interest-bearing transaction accounts, certificates of deposits, money market accounts, and other time deposits, as well as bond accounting, asset/liability consulting related activities, and other clearing and corporate checking account services.