BNP Paribas Financial Markets Lowers Stake in Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets reduced its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) by 45.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,581 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,501 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.08% of Sierra Bancorp worth $334,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BSRR. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 3.0% during the second 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 purchasing an additional 3,531 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 8.2% in the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 1.2% in the second quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 657,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,707,000 after acquiring an additional 7,515 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $142,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 24.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 74,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 14,335 shares in the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Albert L. Berra sold 2,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.24, for a total transaction of $81,889.60. Following the transaction, the director now owns 150,063 shares in the company, valued at $4,838,031.12. This represents a 1.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director James C. Holly sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.98, for a total transaction of $144,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 313,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,081,462.60. This trade represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 8,056 shares of company stock worth $244,741. 11.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Sierra Bancorp stock opened at $31.14 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $448.23 million, a PE ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.54. Sierra Bancorp has a one year low of $17.69 and a one year high of $35.13.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $52.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.30 million. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 17.91% and a return on equity of 10.48%. Research analysts expect that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.08%. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BSRR has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Sierra Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Sierra Bancorp from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

About Sierra Bancorp

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.