Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.
What: Shares of regional bank Sierra Bancorp (BSRR -2.30%) climbed 10% today on continued bullishness over last week's quarterly results .
So what: Sierra has had a relatively tough time bouncing back from the financial crisis, but last Monday's Q3 results -- net income more than doubled year-over-year -- continue to fuel optimism on Wall Street that management's turnaround initiatives have been gaining traction. While the net interest margin slipped 29 basis points over the year-ago period, the drop was somewhat offset by a solid increase in non-interest bearing demand deposits, as well as a shift into lower-cost deposit categories, giving investors plenty of good vibes over Sierra's growth trajectory.
Now what: Although it won't be completely smooth sailing ahead, the worst is likely over for Sierra. "While we can't state with certainty that difficult times are behind us, we can say with assurance that it has been the loyalty and dedication of our customers, shareholders, and staff that have carried us through the downturn and positioned us to once again realize our potential as a top-performing bank," CEO James Holly said in a statement. With Sierra shares up more than 60% year-to-date and trading at a price-to-book of 1.4, however, much of that potential might already be baked into the valuation.
