Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Short Interest Up 21.7% in December

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 186,200 shares, a growth of 21.7% from the December 15th total of 153,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 32,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Investar news, Director Scott G. Ginn bought 8,475 shares of Investar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $23.68 per share, with a total value of $200,688.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 8,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $200,688. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 8.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investar

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Investar by 6.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 26,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $519,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Investar by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 51,524 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,000,000 after buying an additional 2,546 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Investar in the 3rd quarter worth about $57,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Investar by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 3,059 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Investar by 46.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 16,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $318,000 after acquiring an additional 5,190 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Investar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Investar Stock Up 1.8 %

ISTR stock opened at $20.12 on Friday. Investar has a one year low of $14.60 and a one year high of $24.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $22.39 and its 200 day moving average is $19.86. The firm has a market cap of $197.78 million, a PE ratio of 11.24 and a beta of 0.81.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $40.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.07 million. Investar had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 11.35%. On average, research analysts forecast that Investar will post 1.64 EPS for the current year.

Investar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.105 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. Investar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.46%.

About Investar

Investar Holding Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Investar Bank that provides a range of commercial banking products to individuals, professionals, and small to medium-sized businesses in south Louisiana, southeast Texas, and Alabama in the United States. The company offers various deposit products and services, such as savings, checking, money market, and individual retirement accounts, as well as various certificates of deposit; debit and credit cards; internet, mobile, and video banking services; and reciprocal deposit products.