Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) shares hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $18.71 and last traded at $18.6950, with a volume of 77109 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $18.44.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on BANC. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Banc of California from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 25th. Citigroup raised shares of Banc of California from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $18.00 to $21.50 in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Banc of California in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Banc of California from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Banc of California presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.25.

Banc of California Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.70. The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 13th. The bank reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $315.66 million for the quarter. Banc of California had a return on equity of 8.00% and a net margin of 11.49%. As a group, research analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Banc of California

In other Banc of California news, insider Hamid Hussain sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.59, for a total value of $331,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 66,444 shares in the company, valued at $1,102,305.96. This represents a 23.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banc of California

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Centerbridge Partners L.P. raised its position in shares of Banc of California by 18.7% during the 1st quarter. Centerbridge Partners L.P. now owns 4,771,784 shares of the bank’s stock worth $67,712,000 after purchasing an additional 752,239 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Banc of California by 22.2% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,201 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 762 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Banc of California by 111.4% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 177,344 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,503,000 after buying an additional 93,454 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Banc of California by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,575,301 shares of the bank’s stock worth $135,874,000 after buying an additional 50,452 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Banc of California in the first quarter valued at $6,390,000. 86.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Banc of California

Banc of California, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Banc of California that provides various banking products and services in California. The company offers deposit products, such as checking, savings, money market, demand, and time deposits; certificates of deposit; retirement accounts; and safe deposit boxes.