Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Stock Position Lifted by Kennedy Capital Management LLC

Kennedy Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) by 36.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 214,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 57,178 shares during the quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned about 2.18% of Investar worth $3,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ISTR. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Investar by 18.9% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 215,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,207,000 after purchasing an additional 34,175 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Investar by 7.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 45,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $745,000 after buying an additional 3,325 shares in the last quarter. Banc Funds Co. LLC grew its holdings in Investar by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Banc Funds Co. LLC now owns 609,617 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,089,000 after acquiring an additional 16,918 shares during the period. AJOVista LLC bought a new stake in Investar in the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new stake in Investar in the 4th quarter valued at about $180,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on ISTR. StockNews.com raised shares of Investar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Hovde Group cut their price objective on Investar from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd.

Investar Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ISTR traded up $0.23 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $18.81. 55,373 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 43,756. Investar Holding Co. has a 1-year low of $9.07 and a 1-year high of $18.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The firm has a market cap of $184.90 million, a P/E ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.26.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.06. Investar had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 10.04%. The firm had revenue of $38.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.23 million. Analysts anticipate that Investar Holding Co. will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Investar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 1st. Investar’s dividend payout ratio is 22.35%.

Investar 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.