Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Rating Lowered to "Hold" at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Sierra Bancorp from $23.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Sierra Bancorp Trading Up 0.2 %

BSRR stock traded up $0.05 on Wednesday, hitting $28.94. 20,387 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 31,394. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $422.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.85 and a beta of 0.89. Sierra Bancorp has a twelve month low of $16.75 and a twelve month high of $31.85. The business's fifty day moving average is $28.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $25.11.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $52.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $38.30 million. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 17.77% and a return on equity of 10.66%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. Sierra Bancorp's payout ratio is 39.67%.

Insider Activity at Sierra Bancorp

In other Sierra Bancorp news, EVP Michael Olague sold 3,098 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.70, for a total transaction of $85,814.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,409 shares in the company, valued at $343,729.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 11.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BSRR. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the third quarter worth $29,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 45.7% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 957 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the first quarter worth about $94,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Sierra Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $142,000. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Sierra Bancorp by 8.2% during 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 in the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.