Southern States Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SSBK) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Southern States Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:SSBK) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 41,500 shares, a growth of 21.7% from the December 31st total of 34,100 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 21,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Southern States Bancshares Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of SSBK traded down $0.54 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $32.25. 10,729 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 25,597. The stock has a market cap of $318.63 million, a P/E ratio of 8.79 and a beta of 0.33. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $34.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.46. Southern States Bancshares has a 12 month low of $22.13 and a 12 month high of $39.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Southern States Bancshares (NASDAQ:SSBK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter. Southern States Bancshares had a return on equity of 15.04% and a net margin of 19.68%.

Southern States Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Southern States Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is 9.81%.

Institutional Trading of Southern States Bancshares

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern States Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $115,000. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern States Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Southern States Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern States Bancshares by 3,572.3% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 7,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 7,216 shares during the period. Finally, OneAscent Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern States Bancshares in the third quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Hovde Group reduced their price objective on Southern States Bancshares from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Southern States Bancshares Company Profile

Southern States Bancshares, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Southern States Bank that provides community banking services to businesses and individuals. The company provides various deposit products, such as savings, money market, and noninterest-bearing demand accounts; certificates of deposit; and time deposits.