Analysts Set Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Target Price at $37.00

Shares of Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $37.00.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a report on Friday, March 27th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $36.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Sierra Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Julie G. Castle sold 750 shares of the 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 sale, the director directly owned 2,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,207.83. This represents a 23.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Lynda Scearcy sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $175,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 30,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,054,655. The trade was a 14.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,000 shares of company stock valued at $402,478. Corporate insiders own 11.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sierra Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Sierra Bancorp in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 3,714.3% during the third 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 period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 829 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 121.6% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,956 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $153,000. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sierra Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of BSRR opened at $33.99 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $448.33 million, a PE ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 0.77. Sierra Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $22.42 and a fifty-two week high of $38.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company’s 50-day moving average is $35.11 and its 200-day moving average is $32.43.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 2nd. The financial services provider reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 11.82% and a net margin of 20.96%. Equities analysts forecast that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 EPS for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This is a positive change from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.33%.

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.