Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning.

Separately, Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Investar in a research report on Friday, February 21st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $21.00 target price on the stock.

Investar Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ ISTR opened at $17.37 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Investar has a fifty-two week low of $14.60 and a fifty-two week high of $24.81. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $18.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.29. The stock has a market cap of $170.68 million, a PE ratio of 8.51 and a beta of 0.81.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.26. Investar had a net margin of 12.81% and a return on equity of 8.00%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Investar will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Investar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.105 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. Investar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Investar by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 26,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 5,224 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Investar by 5.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 108,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,117,000 after buying an additional 5,774 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Investar during the third quarter valued at approximately $572,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Investar by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 54,123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,189,000 after buying an additional 2,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Investar by 46.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 16,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $318,000 after acquiring an additional 5,190 shares in the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Investar

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.