Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Short Interest Update

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 186,200 shares, an increase of 21.7% from the December 15th total of 153,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s shares 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 at Investar

In other news, Director Scott G. Ginn bought 8,475 shares of Investar stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $23.68 per share, for a total transaction of $200,688.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 8,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $200,688. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 8.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Investar

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Investar by 25.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 26,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 5,224 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Investar by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 108,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,117,000 after acquiring an additional 5,774 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Investar during the 3rd quarter valued at $572,000. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Investar by 2,810.1% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 10,257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Investar by 49.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 161,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,127,000 after purchasing an additional 53,434 shares during the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Investar Price Performance

Shares of ISTR opened at $20.12 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.86. Investar has a fifty-two week low of $14.60 and a fifty-two week high of $24.81. The stock has a market cap of $197.78 million, a PE ratio of 11.24 and a beta of 0.81. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.12. Investar had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 11.35%. The company had revenue of $40.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.07 million. Analysts anticipate that Investar will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Investar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.105 dividend. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Investar’s payout ratio is 23.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut 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.