Short Interest in Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) Increases By 22.0%

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) saw a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 87,000 shares, an increase of 22.0% from the March 31st total of 71,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 29,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days. Currently, 0.7% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on BSRR. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Sierra Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $24.00 to $23.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd.

Sierra Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of BSRR stock traded up $0.26 on Monday, reaching $20.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 27,055. The company has a market capitalization of $300.76 million, a P/E ratio of 8.47 and a beta of 0.93. Sierra Bancorp has a 12-month low of $15.01 and a 12-month high of $23.21. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $18.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $50.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.15 million. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.11% and a net margin of 17.80%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Sierra Bancorp will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sierra Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.48%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Sierra Bancorp by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 996,631 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,474,000 after acquiring an additional 3,348 shares during the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. boosted its position in Sierra Bancorp by 4.0% during the third quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 653,714 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,394,000 after buying an additional 25,256 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 15.6% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 77,645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,568,000 after buying an additional 10,496 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 20.0% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 43,620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $984,000 after buying an additional 7,260 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 118.2% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $343,000 after acquiring an additional 8,243 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Bank of the Sierra that provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in California. It accepts various deposit products, such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money market demand accounts, time deposits, retirement accounts, and sweep accounts.