Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Sierra Bancorp from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of Sierra Bancorp stock traded up $0.24 on Friday, reaching $29.75. 37,917 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 44,881. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $428.10 million, a PE ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 0.92. Sierra Bancorp has a 1-year low of $17.69 and a 1-year high of $35.13. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $30.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.14.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $52.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.30 million. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 17.91%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Albert L. Berra sold 2,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.24, for a total value of $81,889.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 150,063 shares in the company, valued at $4,838,031.12. The trade was a 1.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James C. Holly sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.98, for a total transaction of $144,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 313,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,081,462.60. The trade was a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,056 shares of company stock worth $244,741. 11.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sierra Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 997 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Sierra Bancorp by 40.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 65,858 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,902,000 after purchasing an additional 19,025 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth about $216,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 301.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 12,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,818,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

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.