Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Saturday.

Separately, Piper Sandler upgraded Investar from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Investar Price Performance

ISTR opened at $19.37 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $190.70 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.50 and a beta of 0.58. Investar has a 12-month low of $14.60 and a 12-month high of $24.81. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $17.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.87.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $20.25 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.90 million. Investar had a return on equity of 8.00% and a net margin of 12.81%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Investar will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ISTR. Rhino Investment Partners Inc raised its stake in Investar by 383.8% in the fourth quarter. Rhino Investment Partners Inc now owns 145,448 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,194,000 after buying an additional 115,387 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Investar by 55.3% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 191,093 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,196,000 after buying an additional 68,027 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Investar by 42.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 228,877 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,026,000 after buying an additional 67,695 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in Investar in the fourth quarter valued at about $651,000. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Investar by 38.4% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 98,293 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,159,000 after buying an additional 27,254 shares during the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Investar Company 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.