Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Shares Bought by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) by 46.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,190 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.17% of Investar worth $318,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ISTR. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Investar by 14.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 251,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,869,000 after buying an additional 31,589 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Investar by 49.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 161,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,127,000 after buying an additional 53,434 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in Investar by 5.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 108,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,117,000 after purchasing an additional 5,774 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Investar by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 51,524 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,000,000 after buying an additional 2,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its position in Investar by 88.9% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 39,037 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $757,000 after acquiring an additional 18,367 shares in the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Investar news, Director Scott G. Ginn purchased 8,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $23.68 per share, for a total transaction of $200,688.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $200,688. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 8.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Investar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th.

Investar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ISTR opened at $19.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $21.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.09. The company has a market cap of $188.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 0.81. Investar Holding Co. has a twelve month low of $14.60 and a twelve month high of $24.81.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.26. Investar had a net margin of 11.35% and a return on equity of 6.94%. Research analysts predict that Investar Holding Co. will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Investar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.105 dividend. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Investar’s dividend payout ratio is 23.46%.

Investar Profile

Investar Holding Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Investar Bank that provides a range of commercial banking products to individuals, professionals, and small to medium-sized businesses in south Louisiana, southeast Texas, and Alabama in the United States. The company offers various deposit products and services, such as savings, checking, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as various certificates of deposit; debit and credit cards; internet, mobile, and video banking services; and reciprocal deposit products.