Rafferty Asset Management LLC Decreases Stake in SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of SouthState Co. (NASDAQ:SSB) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 100,598 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 11,350 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned about 0.13% of SouthState worth $10,007,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SouthState during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SouthState during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of SouthState by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 508 shares of the bank’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SouthState during the 4th quarter worth about $102,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in SouthState by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,161 shares of the bank’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at SouthState

In other news, Director Janet P. Froetscher acquired 2,717 shares of SouthState stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $431,481.78. This trade represents a 137.78% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sara Arana sold 1,991 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.78, for a total value of $200,652.98. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,787 shares in the company, valued at $482,433.86. This trade represents a 29.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SSB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays reduced their price target on SouthState from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on SouthState in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $106.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson reduced their price target on SouthState from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $119.00 price target on shares of SouthState in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Raymond James set a $110.00 price target on SouthState in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, SouthState currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $116.90.

SouthState Stock Performance

Shares of SSB opened at $91.30 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $88.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.89. SouthState Co. has a 52-week low of $70.68 and a 52-week high of $114.27. The firm has a market cap of $9.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 0.75. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. SouthState’s payout ratio is 34.12%.

SouthState Profile

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.