Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

ISTR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings raised Investar from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $31.50 price objective on shares of Investar in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research cut Investar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.50.

Investar Trading Down 0.6%

Investar stock opened at $27.71 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Investar has a 52 week low of $17.89 and a 52 week high of $31.77. The company has a market capitalization of $382.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.11.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.18. Investar had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 16.53%.The firm had revenue of $35.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.40 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Investar will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Investar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Investar’s payout ratio is presently 19.30%.

Institutional Trading of Investar

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ISTR. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Investar by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 58,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,022,000 after buying an additional 3,905 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Investar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 230,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,455,000 after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Investar by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Investar by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 58,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 3,757 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Investar by 46.9% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 17,960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 5,738 shares in the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.