Short Interest in Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Rises By 15.4%

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 38,200 shares, an increase of 15.4% from the May 31st total of 33,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 27,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days. Approximately 0.5% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on ISTR. StockNews.com raised shares of Investar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Hovde Group cut their price target on Investar from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd.

Investar Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ISTR opened at $15.35 on Wednesday. Investar has a fifty-two week low of $9.07 and a fifty-two week high of $17.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The company has a market cap of $150.89 million, a PE ratio of 8.58 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $15.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.03.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $19.96 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.78 million. Investar had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 12.02%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Investar will post 1.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Investar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 1st. Investar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Investar

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AJOVista LLC acquired a new position in shares of Investar during the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Investar during the first quarter valued at about $185,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new position in Investar during the fourth quarter worth about $180,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Investar in the third quarter worth about $149,000. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its holdings in Investar by 24.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 23,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 4,614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.17% of the company’s stock.

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.