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

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) saw a large decrease in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 176,500 shares, a decrease of 21.5% from the October 31st total of 224,700 shares. Currently, 2.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 35,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.0 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Investar Stock Performance

Shares of ISTR stock remained flat at $23.82 during trading on Monday. 35,106 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 42,241. The company has a market capitalization of $234.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business’s fifty day moving average is $21.33 and its 200-day moving average is $18.38. Investar has a twelve month low of $11.36 and a twelve month high of $24.81.

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

Investar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.105 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. This is an increase from Investar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Investar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Investar

In other news, Director Scott G. Ginn purchased 8,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 acquisition, the director now directly owns 8,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $200,688. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 8.73% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Investar

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ISTR. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Investar in the 3rd quarter valued at $57,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Investar by 129.1% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Investar by 2,810.1% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 10,257 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Investar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $272,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Investar by 851.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 12,815 shares in the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.