Piper Sandler Upgrades Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) to Overweight

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Piper Sandler from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $22.00 target price on the financial services provider's stock, up from their prior target price of $21.00. Piper Sandler's target price would indicate a potential upside of 20.61% from the company's current price.

Separately, StockNews.com cut Investar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 6th.

Investar Stock Performance

ISTR stock traded down $0.24 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $18.24. 23,210 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 44,861. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $179.14 million, a P/E ratio of 8.94 and a beta of 0.52. Investar has a 12 month low of $14.60 and a 12 month high of $24.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investar

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Investar by 3,194.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,779 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 1,725 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Investar by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 2,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its position in Investar by 26.4% during the 1st quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 3,001 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in Investar by 47.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,309 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $182,000 after purchasing an additional 2,688 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Investar during the fourth quarter worth $211,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.17% of the company's stock.

About Investar

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.