Piper Sandler Cuts Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Price Target to $34.00

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) had its target price cut by Piper Sandler from $36.00 to $34.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on BSRR. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research note on Friday, March 27th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Sierra Bancorp from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Sierra Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.00.

Sierra Bancorp Price Performance

Sierra Bancorp stock opened at $33.99 on Thursday. Sierra Bancorp has a 12-month low of $22.42 and a 12-month high of $38.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $448.33 million, a P/E ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $35.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 2nd. The financial services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $40.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.04 million. Sierra Bancorp had a net margin of 20.96% and a return on equity of 11.82%. Equities analysts predict that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lynda Scearcy sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $175,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 30,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,054,655. This trade represents a 14.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Julie G. Castle sold 750 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock in a transaction on 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 owned 2,431 shares in the company, valued at $92,207.83. The trade was a 23.58% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock valued at $402,478. 11.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 24,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $787,000 after purchasing an additional 3,058 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Sierra Bancorp by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 79,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,614,000 after buying an additional 6,432 shares during the period. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP acquired a new position in Sierra Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC purchased a new stake in Sierra Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $8,465,000. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sierra Bancorp by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 132,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,346,000 after buying an additional 6,432 shares during the period. 55.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sierra Bancorp

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.