Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Stock: Insider Lynda Scearcy Sells 5,300 Shares

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Director Lynda Scearcy sold 5,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.46, for a total transaction of $219,738.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,839 shares in the company, valued at $242,084.94. This represents a 47.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Lynda Scearcy also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, November 9th, Lynda Scearcy sold 12,725 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.75, for a total transaction of $531,268.75.
• On Tuesday, November 3rd, Lynda Scearcy sold 8,010 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.15, for a total transaction of $337,621.50.
• On Thursday, October 29th, Lynda Scearcy sold 5,850 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.34, for a total transaction of $247,689.00.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of BSRR opened at $42.14 on Wednesday. Sierra Bancorp has a 52 week low of $28.35 and a 52 week high of $44.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $546.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $40.49 and a 200-day moving average of $38.47.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $40.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.23 million. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.89% and a net margin of 25.32%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sierra Bancorp will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 2nd were given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 2nd. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sierra Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BSRR. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Sierra Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $53,249,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $17,865,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,576,000. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $7,503,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,780,000. 55.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BSRR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised Sierra Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research report on Monday, October 26th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $47.00 to $48.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.83.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp is the bank holding company for Bank of the Sierra, a community bank headquartered in Porterville, California. Founded in 1977, the bank serves individuals, families, farmers, small businesses and commercial customers in California’s Central Valley and surrounding communities. Bank of the Sierra provides a range of banking products and services, including checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, consumer and residential lending, commercial real estate loans, business banking, agricultural financing and online and mobile banking.