Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Monday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Sierra Bancorp from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

Sierra Bancorp Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ BSRR opened at $28.25 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $394.48 million, a PE ratio of 10.05 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Sierra Bancorp has a 12 month low of $17.69 and a 12 month high of $35.13. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $29.82 and a 200-day moving average of $29.82.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.72. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 19.90%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.54%. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Julie G. Castle sold 1,104 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $35,328.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,157 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,024. This trade represents a 20.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Michael Olague sold 3,563 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total value of $110,987.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,409 shares in the company, valued at $386,540.35. This trade represents a 22.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,668 shares of company stock worth $146,346 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sierra Bancorp

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury acquired a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $137,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 997 shares during the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $202,000. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the third quarter worth about $216,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 8,249 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 838 shares during the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Bank of the Sierra that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in California. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market demand accounts, time deposits, retirement accounts, and sweep accounts.