Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Hold consensus: Five analysts give Sierra Bancorp an average rating of "Hold" (3 holds, 2 buys) with a 12‑month average target of $37.00, while recent targets range from $34 (Piper Sandler) to $44 (DA Davidson).
• Insider activity: Directors sold 6,000 shares worth $227,478 over the past 90 days, leaving corporate insiders with roughly 11.83% ownership while institutional investors/hedge funds own about 55.4%.
• Financials and payout: Sierra Bancorp beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.97 vs. $0.85) and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.26 (annualized $1.04, ~2.9% yield) with a payout ratio of 33.3%.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the five research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $37.00.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BSRR. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Zacks Research cut shares of Sierra Bancorp from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a report on Friday, March 27th.

Insider Transactions at Sierra Bancorp

In other Sierra Bancorp news, Director Julie G. Castle sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.93, for a total value of $28,447.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,431 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,207.83. This trade represents a 23.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director James C. Holly sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.93, for a total transaction of $189,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 302,970 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,491,652.10. This trade represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $227,478. 11.83% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD purchased a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $247,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 121.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,565 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,956 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 25.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,578 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 1,960 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 3,714.3% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,068 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 57.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,266 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 829 shares in the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ BSRR opened at $36.27 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $474.77 million, a P/E ratio of 11.63 and a beta of 0.77. Sierra Bancorp has a 52-week low of $24.06 and a 52-week high of $38.60. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $35.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The financial services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $40.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $40.04 million. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 20.96% and a return on equity of 11.82%. Equities research analysts expect that Sierra Bancorp will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be issued a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Sierra Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Sierra Bancorp Company Profile

Sierra Bancorp NASDAQ: BSRR is a bank holding company headquartered in Porterville, California. The company operates through its banking subsidiary, offering a full suite of financial services to individual and commercial clients. With a community-focused approach, Sierra Bancorp emphasizes relationship banking and local market expertise.

Its core business activities include deposit-taking and lending. On the deposit side, Sierra Bancorp provides checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts.

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