Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR)’s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $30.46 and traded as high as $34.23. Sierra Bancorp shares last traded at $33.97, with a volume of 56,991 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BSRR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research note on Monday, December 29th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price target on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sierra Bancorp has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.50.

Sierra Bancorp Trading Down 0.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $451.73 million, a P/E ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.46. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.57 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sierra Bancorp

In other news, CAO Cindy L. Dabney sold 3,443 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $110,176.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 6,465 shares in the company, valued at $206,880. This represents a 34.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Lynda Scearcy sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $30,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 30,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $906,990. This represents a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,143 shares of company stock worth $163,544. Corporate insiders own 11.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BSRR. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Sierra Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,040 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Sierra Bancorp by 57.7% during the second 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 during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Sierra Bancorp in the second quarter worth approximately $71,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in 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 valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 1,956 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.