Scott G. Ginn Purchases 8,475 Shares of Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Stock

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Director Scott G. Ginn bought 8,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $23.68 per share, for a total transaction of $200,688.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Investar Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ISTR opened at $24.45 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $20.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.16. The company has a market capitalization of $240.29 million, a PE ratio of 13.66 and a beta of 0.76. Investar Holding Co. has a 52 week low of $10.34 and a 52 week 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.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.12. Investar had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 11.35%. The business had revenue of $40.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.07 million. Analysts forecast that Investar Holding Co. will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Investar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $0.105 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Investar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Investar’s payout ratio is currently 23.46%.

Institutional Trading of Investar

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ISTR. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Investar in the 1st quarter valued at about $504,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Investar by 2,810.1% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $164,000 after acquiring an additional 10,257 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Investar by 14.3% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 99,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,625,000 after acquiring an additional 12,412 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Investar by 14.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 251,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,869,000 after purchasing an additional 31,589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Investar by 111.4% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 48,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 25,330 shares in the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Investar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th.

Investar Company Profile

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.