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

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

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

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

BSRR stock traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $27.99. 42,699 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 31,612. The firm has a market capitalization of $408.54 million, a PE ratio of 11.57 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $28.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.75. Sierra Bancorp has a 52 week low of $16.75 and a 52 week high of $31.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share 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 return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 17.77%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael Olague sold 3,098 shares of Sierra Bancorp 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 12,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $343,729.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Sierra Bancorp news, Director Julie G. Castle sold 1,235 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.36, for a total transaction of $36,259.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at $149,736. 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 at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Olague sold 3,098 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.70, for a total value of $85,814.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,409 shares in the company, valued at $343,729.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 46,366 shares of company stock worth $1,370,158 in the last ninety days. 11.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake 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 in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 45.7% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 957 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 119,520 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,675,000 after acquiring an additional 3,531 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sierra Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at about $94,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in Sierra Bancorp by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 66,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,337,000 after acquiring an additional 4,900 shares during the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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