Short Interest in Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Rises By 21.7%

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 96,900 shares, an increase of 21.7% from the September 15th total of 79,600 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 40,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Insider Transactions at Sierra Bancorp

In other news, EVP Michael Olague sold 14,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.95, for a total transaction of $436,023.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $534,351.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Michael Olague sold 14,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.95, for a total value of $436,023.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,265 shares in the company, valued at approximately $534,351.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Julie G. Castle sold 1,235 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.36, for a total transaction of $36,259.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,100 shares in the company, valued at $149,736. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 46,366 shares of company stock valued at $1,370,158. Insiders own 11.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Sierra Bancorp by 45.7% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Sierra Bancorp during the first quarter worth approximately $94,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Sierra Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $142,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $268,000 after purchasing an additional 904 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 66,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,337,000 after buying an additional 4,900 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

Sierra Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of BSRR stock traded up $1.03 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $28.47. 14,500 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 31,076. The firm has a market cap of $415.55 million, a PE ratio of 11.76 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.30. Sierra Bancorp has a 1-year low of $16.75 and a 1-year high of $31.85.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.11. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 17.77% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The business had revenue of $51.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.30 million. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 31st. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.37%. This is a positive change from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BSRR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $23.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded Sierra Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th.

Sierra Bancorp Company Profile

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.