Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Short Interest Update

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) saw a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 54,700 shares, a decline of 8.8% from the January 15th total of 60,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 47,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.2 days. Currently, 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Sierra Bancorp Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ BSRR opened at $31.08 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $447.37 million, a PE ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 0.92. Sierra Bancorp has a 1-year low of $17.69 and a 1-year high of $35.13. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $29.87 and a 200-day moving average of $29.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.72. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 19.90%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. This is a boost from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.59%.

Insider Transactions at Sierra Bancorp

In other Sierra Bancorp news, EVP Michael Olague sold 3,563 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.15, for a total transaction of $110,987.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 12,409 shares in the company, valued at $386,540.35. This trade represents a 22.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Julie G. Castle sold 1,104 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $35,328.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,157 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $133,024. The trade was a 20.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,668 shares of company stock valued at $146,346. 11.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the third quarter worth about $142,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Sierra Bancorp by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 74,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,137,000 after buying an additional 14,335 shares during the period. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 21.2% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 46,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,329,000 after buying an additional 8,033 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 5.3% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 74,994 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,166,000 after buying an additional 3,752 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on BSRR shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Sierra Bancorp from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of Sierra Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

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.