Insider Selling: Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Director Sells 1,104 Shares of Stock

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Director Julie G. Castle sold 1,104 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $35,328.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,157 shares in the company, valued at $133,024. This represents a 20.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Down 2.4 %

BSRR stock opened at $31.15 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $448.25 million, a PE ratio of 11.09 and a beta of 0.92. Sierra Bancorp has a 12 month low of $17.69 and a 12 month high of $35.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.49.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.72. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 19.90%. Equities research analysts forecast that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This is a positive change from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.21%. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on BSRR shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Sierra Bancorp from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com lowered Sierra Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Sierra Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $142,000. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the third quarter valued at $216,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $385,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 9.7% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 16,827 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 1,484 shares in the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sierra Bancorp Company Profile

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.