Banc Funds Co. LLC Sells 25,692 Shares of Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR)

Banc Funds Co. LLC lessened its holdings in Investar Holding Co. (NASDAQ:ISTR) by 4.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 583,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 25,692 shares during the quarter. Banc Funds Co. LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Investar worth $11,328,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ISTR. Copeland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Investar during the third quarter worth $57,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in Investar by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in Investar by 2,810.1% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 10,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 10,257 shares during the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in Investar during the 3rd quarter worth about $272,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Investar by 851.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 12,815 shares during the last quarter. 50.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Scott G. Ginn bought 8,475 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $23.68 per share, with a total value of $200,688.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,475 shares in the company, valued at $200,688. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 8.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Investar Trading Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ:ISTR opened at $23.82 on Monday. Investar Holding Co. has a 52 week low of $10.87 and a 52 week high of $24.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $21.24 and its 200-day moving average is $18.32. The firm has a market cap of $234.15 million, a P/E ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 0.76.

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

Investar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.105 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. This is a boost from Investar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Investar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.46%.

Investar 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.