Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Stock Price Passes Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Investar Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:ISTR)’s stock price passed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.10 and traded as high as $29.27. Investar shares last traded at $29.03, with a volume of 268,179 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Investar from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research lowered Investar from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $31.50 price target on shares of Investar in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Investar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.50.

Investar Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $400.32 million, a P/E ratio of 12.73 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.10 and a 200-day moving average of $27.58.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.18. Investar had a return on equity of 10.62% and a net margin of 16.53%.The firm had revenue of $35.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.40 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Investar Holding Corporation will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Investar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Investar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ISTR. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Investar by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 58,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,022,000 after purchasing an additional 3,905 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Investar by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 230,560 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,455,000 after purchasing an additional 2,639 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Investar by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Investar by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 58,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 3,757 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Investar by 46.9% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 17,960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 5,738 shares during the period. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Investar

Investar Holdings, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, operating through its primary subsidiary, Investar Bank. The company delivers commercial and consumer banking products across southeastern Louisiana and into select Texas markets, focusing on relationship-driven service. Investar Bank’s offerings include deposit accounts, lending solutions, online and mobile banking, and treasury management services.

Its lending portfolio encompasses commercial real estate financing, construction and development loans, commercial and industrial credits, agricultural loans, and residential mortgage originations.