Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Investar from “hold” to “buy,” although the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold” with a $31.50 target price.
• Investar reported quarterly EPS of $0.75, beating estimates of $0.71, while revenue of $36.55 million also exceeded expectations.
• Institutional investors own 50.17% of the company, with BlackRock establishing a position valued at approximately $37.6 million and Fourthstone increasing its holdings by 148.7%.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ISTR. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Investar in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Zacks Research cut Investar from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.50.

Investar Stock Performance

Shares of ISTR stock opened at $30.87 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $425.39 million, a P/E ratio of 12.70 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50 day moving average of $30.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.94. Investar has a 52 week low of $21.43 and a 52 week high of $31.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.04. Investar had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 17.55%.The business had revenue of $36.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.35 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Investar will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investar

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ISTR. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Investar in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,649,000. Fourthstone LLC grew its holdings in shares of Investar by 148.7% during the 4th quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 695,992 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,597,000 after purchasing an additional 416,145 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Investar by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 437,405 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,928,000 after purchasing an additional 26,842 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of Investar by 4.1% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 431,281 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,010,000 after purchasing an additional 17,015 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Investar by 1.2% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 230,560 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,455,000 after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the period. 50.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Investar Company Profile

Investar Holdings, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, operating through its primary subsidiary, Investar Bank. The company delivers commercial and consumer banking products across southeastern Louisiana and into select Texas markets, focusing on relationship-driven service. Investar Bank's offerings include deposit accounts, lending solutions, online and mobile banking, and treasury management services.

Its lending portfolio encompasses commercial real estate financing, construction and development loans, commercial and industrial credits, agricultural loans, and residential mortgage originations.

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