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

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) saw a significant 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 shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 32,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.8 days.

Investar Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ISTR opened at $20.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Investar has a 12-month low of $14.60 and a 12-month high of $24.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.24 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $22.39 and a 200 day moving average of $19.86.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $40.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.07 million. Investar had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 11.35%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Investar will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Investar Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Investar

In related news, Director Scott G. Ginn bought 8,475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $23.68 per share, for a total transaction of $200,688.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 8,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $200,688. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 8.73% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Investar during the third quarter valued at approximately $57,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Investar by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers lifted 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 valued at $164,000 after buying an additional 10,257 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Investar during the 3rd quarter valued at $272,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Investar by 851.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $278,000 after buying an additional 12,815 shares during the period. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded Investar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report 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.