Sierra Bancorp's (BSRR) "Buy" Rating Reiterated at DA Davidson

Key Points

• DA Davidson reiterated a Buy rating on Sierra Bancorp with a $44 price target (about 18.3% upside), while the Street consensus remains a Hold with a $37 average target.
• Sierra Bancorp beat Q1 EPS expectations ($0.96 vs. $0.82) but slightly missed revenue ($38.58M vs. $39.68M), reporting a net margin of 20.96% and ROE of 11.82%.
• Insiders sold a total of 6,000 shares (≈$227K) over the last 90 days—reducing holdings—while insiders still own 11.83% of the stock and institutional investors hold 55.40%.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at DA Davidson in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $44.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. DA Davidson's target price suggests a potential upside of 18.26% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Sierra Bancorp from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Sierra Bancorp from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.00.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BSRR traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $37.21. The stock had a trading volume of 20,945 shares, compared to its average volume of 61,666. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $35.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.21. Sierra Bancorp has a twelve month low of $25.88 and a twelve month high of $38.60. The firm has a market cap of $487.13 million, a PE ratio of 11.92 and a beta of 0.77.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $38.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.68 million. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 20.96% and a return on equity of 11.82%. Research analysts predict that Sierra Bancorp will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Julie G. Castle sold 750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.93, for a total transaction of $28,447.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,431 shares in the company, valued at $92,207.83. The trade was a 23.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director James C. Holly sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, 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. Insiders sold a total of 6,000 shares of company stock worth $227,478 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 11.83% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Sierra Bancorp by 3,714.3% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,068 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,040 shares during the last quarter. 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 valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 121.6% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,565 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,956 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Sierra Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $153,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.40% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.