South Atlantic Bancshares (SABK) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $168.84M
• Dividend Yield: 0.51%
• Average Volume (3M): 3.87K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 11.0
• Beta (1Y): -0.12
• Revenue Growth: 13.91%
• EPS Growth: 61.66%
• Country: US
• Employees: 164
• Sector: Financial
• Sector Strength: 70
• Industry: Banks - Regional
• EPS (TTM): 0.62
• Shares Outstanding: 7,568,111
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 2,779
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 3,867
• PEG Ratio: 0.00
• Price to Book (P/B): 1.06
• Price to Sales (P/S): 1.30
• P/FCF Ratio: 16.55
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 2.24
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 3.82
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 6.96
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 23.13
• 1Y Price Target: N/A
• Price Target Upside: N/A
• Rating Consensus: N/A
• Number of Analyst Covering: 0
• EPS Forecast (FY): 2.34
• Revenue Forecast (FY): N/A

• Rating: 69 Neutral
• Price Target: $21.50 ▲(8.86% Upside)
• Action: Downgraded Date: 12/30/25
• Date: Action: Downgraded 12/30/25

The score is driven primarily by solid financial performance with meaningful caveats—margin compression, elevated leverage, and volatile historical cash flow. Technicals are supportive with price above key moving averages and positive MACD, while valuation is favorable with a low P/E and a modest dividend yield.

Positive Factors

Operational Efficiency

Strong operational efficiency as evidenced by healthy EBIT and EBITDA margins suggests effective cost management and resource utilization, which can support profitability and competitive positioning over the long term.

Asset Base Growth

A growing asset base indicates potential for expansion and increased lending capacity, which can drive future revenue growth and strengthen market position.

Revenue Growth

Despite recent inconsistencies, past revenue growth suggests potential for recovery and expansion, especially if strategic initiatives are implemented effectively.

Negative Factors

Rising Leverage

Increased leverage could strain financial flexibility and elevate risk, particularly if interest rates rise or economic conditions worsen, impacting long-term stability.

Cash Flow Consistency

Inconsistent cash flow generation may hinder the company's ability to invest in growth opportunities and meet financial obligations, affecting long-term financial health.

Profit Generation Challenges

Fluctuating net profit reflects challenges in maintaining consistent profitability, which could impact investor confidence and the ability to fund future growth initiatives.

South Atlantic Bancshares Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

South Atlantic Bancshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for South Atlantic Bank that provides consumer and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, and corporations in South Carolina. The company offers checking, money market, and saving accounts, as well as certificate of deposit, individual retirement, and health saving accounts; personal, auto, and recreation loans, as well as home equity and ready reserve overdraft line of credits, and commercial lending products; and credit cards. It also provides cash management and merchant card services; remote deposit capture and automated clearing house services; online, mobile, and telephone banking services; personal and business checks; mortgage products and services; and wealth management services. As of February 3, 2022, the company operated twelve offices in Myrtle Beach, Carolina Forest, North Myrtle Beach, Murrells Inlet, Pawleys Island, Georgetown, Mount Pleasant, Charleston, Bluffton, Hilton Head Island, and Beaufort, South Carolina. South Atlantic Bancshares, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

How the Company Makes Money

South Atlantic Bancshares makes money primarily through interest income generated from its lending activities, including commercial and residential mortgage loans, personal loans, and lines of credit. The bank earns interest on the loans it provides, which is a major component of its revenue. Additionally, the bank generates non-interest income through fees and service charges related to deposit accounts, loan servicing, and other financial services. The bank's financial performance is also influenced by its ability to manage interest rate spreads, maintain low loan default rates, and expand its customer base through strategic partnerships and community engagement.

South Atlantic Bancshares Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Solid revenue growth with continued profitability, but notable margin compression versus 2021–2022. Balance sheet leverage remains elevated despite slight improvement in 2024, and cash flow is positive recently but historically volatile with only moderate free-cash-flow conversion.

Income Statement

Revenue has expanded strongly over the last several years, with 2024 growth rebounding to +5.2% after a slight decline in 2023. Profitability remains positive, with net income essentially flat in 2023–2024 and a 2024 net margin of ~10.8%. The main weakness is margin compression versus 2021–2022 (net margin was ~24% then), suggesting earnings power has become less efficient even as revenue has grown.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet shows rising leverage compared with earlier years: debt-to-equity increased from very low levels in 2019–2020 to 2.07x in 2023, improving to 1.75x in 2024 but still elevated. Equity has grown, and returns on equity are reasonable (~8.8% in 2024), though down from stronger 2021–2022 levels. Overall, improving but still relatively debt-heavy, leaving less room for error if credit conditions weaken.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is positive in recent years, with 2024 operating cash flow (~$14.0M) and free cash flow (~$7.3M) both positive, and free cash flow covering about half of net income (~52%). However, cash flow has been volatile across the period (notably negative operating/free cash flow in 2020 and negative free cash flow in 2019), and free cash flow declined meaningfully in 2023 before stabilizing in 2024.

Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement
Total Revenue	98.84M	93.28M	74.14M	53.77M	47.83M	41.57M
Gross Profit	54.27M	48.79M	46.68M	47.63M	44.30M	36.32M
EBITDA	16.34M	12.98M	15.06M	16.23M	15.06M	9.84M
Net Income	12.79M	10.06M	10.02M	12.09M	10.85M	7.20M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	1.87B	1.79B	1.62B	1.41B	1.23B	946.54M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	65.94M	0.00	235.76M	235.19M	398.52M	150.05M
Total Debt	109.83M	199.06M	213.46M	93.25M	37.78M	7.87M
Total Liabilities	1.75B	1.68B	1.52B	1.32B	1.13B	848.72M
Stockholders Equity	121.06M	113.77M	102.95M	90.54M	105.51M	97.82M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	0.00	7.31M	5.79M	24.60M	36.67M	-23.65M
Operating Cash Flow	0.00	14.00M	10.11M	25.86M	37.39M	-22.74M
Investing Cash Flow	0.00	-140.22M	-183.44M	-296.22M	-260.31M	-167.83M
Financing Cash Flow	0.00	150.38M	195.16M	190.83M	277.61M	217.55M

South Atlantic Bancshares Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 19.75
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For SABK, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 19.75 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 21.93, below the 50-day MA of 20.45, and above the 200-day MA of 17.93, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 0.63 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 56.92 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 50.12 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for SABK.

South Atlantic Bancshares Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
SBFG	75 Outperform	$130.44M	9.48	10.12%	2.69%	10.78%	21.72%
EBMT	75 Outperform	$173.83M	11.44	7.43%	2.93%	6.10%	59.32%
SABK	69 Neutral	$168.84M	10.95	11.99%	0.51%	13.91%	61.66%
Sector *	68 Neutral	$18.00B	11.42	9.92%	3.81%	9.73%	1.22%
AFBI	64 Neutral	$122.74M	15.33	5.95%	―	5.18%	36.12%
RBKB	63 Neutral	$176.55M	17.34	3.95%	―	22.30%	―
FGBI	61 Neutral	$132.50M	-2.09	-24.07%	0.84%	1.33%	-593.24%