Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Hits New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $38.60 and last traded at $38.4090, with a volume of 7017 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $38.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Sierra Bancorp from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Sierra Bancorp from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded Sierra Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sierra Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $38.50.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $501.57 million, a PE ratio of 12.12 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $34.79 and a 200-day moving average of $31.37.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 2nd. The financial services provider reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.12. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.90% and a net margin of 20.96%.The business had revenue of $39.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.04 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James C. Holly sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.93, for a total value of $189,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 302,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,491,652.10. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Julie G. Castle sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.93, for a total transaction of $28,447.50. Following the sale, the director owned 2,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,207.83. This represents a 23.58% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 15,143 shares of company stock worth $536,022 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 11.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Sierra Bancorp by 3,714.3% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,040 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in Sierra Bancorp by 57.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 121.6% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $153,000. 55.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Sierra Bancorp

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.