Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.05 EPS

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.05, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $36.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.35 million. Investar had a net margin of 16.53% and a return on equity of 10.62%.

Investar Price Performance

Shares of ISTR opened at $29.59 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $408.05 million, a PE ratio of 12.98 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.38. Investar has a 52-week low of $20.99 and a 52-week high of $31.77.

Investar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from Investar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. Investar’s payout ratio is presently 21.05%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investar

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fourthstone LLC lifted its position in Investar by 148.7% in the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 695,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,597,000 after acquiring an additional 416,145 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Investar by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 431,281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,010,000 after purchasing an additional 17,015 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Investar by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 410,563 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,970,000 after purchasing an additional 18,836 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Investar by 1.2% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 230,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,455,000 after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Investar by 0.6% during the second quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 139,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,688,000 after buying an additional 763 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 50.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ISTR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Investar from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Investar from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $31.50 price target on shares of Investar in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Investar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.50.

About Investar

Investar Holdings, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, operating through its primary subsidiary, Investar Bank. The company delivers commercial and consumer banking products across southeastern Louisiana and into select Texas markets, focusing on relationship-driven service. Investar Bank’s offerings include deposit accounts, lending solutions, online and mobile banking, and treasury management services.

Its lending portfolio encompasses commercial real estate financing, construction and development loans, commercial and industrial credits, agricultural loans, and residential mortgage originations.