Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $42.76 and last traded at $42.2950, with a volume of 31845 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $41.57.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Sierra Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 price objective on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Sierra Bancorp from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sierra Bancorp has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Sierra Bancorp Trading Down 1.7%

The company has a market cap of $550.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.28 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.71.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.14. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 12.67%. The business had revenue of $38.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.68 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Sierra Bancorp will post 3.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.32%.

Insider Transactions at Sierra Bancorp

In related news, CFO Christopher G. Treece sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.18, for a total transaction of $381,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,492,647.10. The trade was a 20.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Hugh F. Boyle sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.21, for a total transaction of $382,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 21,781 shares in the company, valued at $832,252.01. The trade was a 31.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $954,108. 11.83% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Sierra Bancorp by 32.9% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 344,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,673,000 after buying an additional 85,098 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Sierra Bancorp by 24.3% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 24,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $842,000 after buying an additional 4,858 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Sierra Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth approximately $358,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 19.2% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 98,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,345,000 after buying an additional 15,877 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. bought a new position in Sierra Bancorp in the first quarter valued at about $284,000. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sierra Bancorp Company Profile

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ: BSRR) is a bank holding company headquartered in Porterville, California. The company operates through its banking subsidiary, offering a full suite of financial services to individual and commercial clients. With a community-focused approach, Sierra Bancorp emphasizes relationship banking and local market expertise.

Its core business activities include deposit-taking and lending. On the deposit side, Sierra Bancorp provides checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts.