Scott G. Ginn Acquires 8,475 Shares of Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Stock

Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) Director Scott G. Ginn purchased 8,475 shares of Investar stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $23.68 per share, with a total value of $200,688.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $200,688. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Investar Price Performance

NASDAQ:ISTR traded up $0.89 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $24.71. The stock had a trading volume of 47,118 shares, compared to its average volume of 42,453. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $242.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. Investar Holding Co. has a one year low of $10.34 and a one year high of $24.81.

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $40.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.07 million. Investar had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 11.35%. Research analysts forecast that Investar Holding Co. will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Investar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.105 dividend. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This is a boost from Investar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Investar’s payout ratio is currently 23.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Investar

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Investar in the third quarter worth $57,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Investar by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Investar by 2,810.1% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $164,000 after buying an additional 10,257 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in Investar in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $272,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Investar by 851.5% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $278,000 after buying an additional 12,815 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Investar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Investar Company Profile

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.