398,737 Shares in Sierra Bancorp $BSRR Acquired by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 398,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $15,678,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BSRR. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Sierra Bancorp by 32.9% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 344,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,673,000 after acquiring an additional 85,098 shares during the last quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,115,000. Academy Capital Management purchased a new stake in Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,365,000. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc purchased a new stake in Sierra Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,510,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Sierra Bancorp by 19.2% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 98,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,345,000 after purchasing an additional 15,877 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

Sierra Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of BSRR opened at $39.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $511.40 million, a P/E ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. Sierra Bancorp has a 1 year low of $26.49 and a 1 year high of $43.13. The company’s fifty day moving average is $40.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.91.

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ:BSRR) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $38.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.59 million. Sierra Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.38% and a net margin of 22.37%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sierra Bancorp will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Sierra Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is an increase from Sierra Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. Sierra Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on BSRR shares. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Sierra Bancorp from $40.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Sierra Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sierra Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sierra Bancorp news, EVP Hugh F. Boyle sold 10,000 shares of Sierra Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.21, for a total value of $382,100.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 21,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $832,252.01. The trade was a 31.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 11.83% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Sierra Bancorp

Sierra Bancorp (NASDAQ: BSRR) is a bank holding company headquartered in Porterville, California. The company operates through its banking subsidiary, offering a full suite of financial services to individual and commercial clients. With a community-focused approach, Sierra Bancorp emphasizes relationship banking and local market expertise.

Its core business activities include deposit-taking and lending. On the deposit side, Sierra Bancorp provides checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts.