Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Shares Pass Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) shares passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $29.31 and traded as high as $32.81. Sierra Bancorp shares last traded at $32.68, with a volume of 60,972 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Sierra Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.50.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Up 4.7%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $29.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $434.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.39 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.07). Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.17% and a net margin of 19.70%.The company had revenue of $40.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.57 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.84%.

Insider Activity at Sierra Bancorp

In related news, Director Lynda Scearcy sold 1,000 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total transaction of $30,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 30,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $906,990. This trade represents a 3.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 11.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 2.8% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 17,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $517,000 after buying an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 2.7% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 19,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $590,000 after buying an additional 527 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Sierra Bancorp by 1.2% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 47,970 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,424,000 after acquiring an additional 577 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in Sierra Bancorp by 5.5% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 12,826 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in Sierra Bancorp by 57.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the period. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Bank of the Sierra that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in California. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market demand accounts, time deposits, retirement accounts, and sweep accounts.