Principal Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in California BanCorp $BCAL

Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 45,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $810,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.14% of California BanCorp as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in California BanCorp by 26,512.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,121 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in California BanCorp during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in California BanCorp by 508.7% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,862 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in California BanCorp by 12.4% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares during the period. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new stake in California BanCorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $90,000. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Richard Hernandez sold 17,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.12, for a total value of $325,040.00. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 72,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,394,517.20. The trade was a 18.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 8.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BCAL shares. DA Davidson upped their price objective on California BanCorp from $23.50 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stephens raised their target price on California BanCorp from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of California BanCorp in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Zacks Research raised California BanCorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have given a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $23.33.

California BanCorp Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of California BanCorp stock opened at $21.30 on Friday. California BanCorp has a 12-month low of $14.56 and a 12-month high of $22.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $685.22 million, a P/E ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.06.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $44.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.07 million. California BanCorp had a net margin of 26.01% and a return on equity of 10.51%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that California BanCorp will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current year.

California BanCorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is an increase from California BanCorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. California BanCorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.74%.

California BanCorp Profile

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) is a bank holding company headquartered in California. Founded to address the diverse financial needs of businesses and individuals across the state, the company focuses on community-oriented banking solutions and operates under a locally based decision-making model.

Through its wholly owned banking subsidiary, California BanCorp offers a suite of deposit products including checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts. Its lending portfolio encompasses commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, as well as consumer lending products such as personal loans and home equity lines of credit.

In addition to core deposit and lending services, the company provides treasury and cash management services, online and mobile banking platforms, and merchant payment solutions designed to streamline operations for small to mid-sized enterprises.