Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.26 EPS

Investar (NASDAQ:ISTR) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.26, Zacks reports. Investar had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 11.35%.

Investar Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of ISTR opened at $19.47 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $22.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $191.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. Investar has a one year low of $14.60 and a one year high of $24.81.

Investar Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.105 per share. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Investar’s payout ratio is 23.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Scott G. Ginn acquired 8,475 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.68 per share, with a total value of $200,688.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 the SEC website. 8.73% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.