Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. Buys New Stake in Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 576,403 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $11,776,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Banc of California during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in Banc of California in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Banc of California in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Banc of California during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in Banc of California during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Banc of California

In other news, insider Olivia I. Lindsay sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.50, for a total transaction of $117,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 32,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $640,419. This represents a 15.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.78% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BANC. Brean Capital lowered shares of Banc of California from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Banc of California from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Banc of California from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Banc of California in a research note on Monday, August 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $23.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Banc of California from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $22.62.

Banc of California Trading Up 1.5%

Banc of California stock opened at $18.87 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $2.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -44.93 and a beta of 0.74. Banc of California, Inc. has a 1 year low of $15.33 and a 1 year high of $21.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $20.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.13.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The bank reported ($1.61) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($2.01). Banc of California had a negative net margin of 1.44% and a positive return on equity of 7.98%. The company had revenue of $16.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $295.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.31 EPS. Banc of California’s quarterly revenue was down 94.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is -114.29%.

Banc of California Profile

Banc of California, N.A. is a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Santa Ana, California, offering a broad spectrum of banking products and services to corporate and individual customers. The bank focuses on serving middle-market businesses, professional service firms, real estate investors and developers, and entrepreneurs throughout California. Its core offerings include deposit accounts, treasury management services, commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, lines of credit and Small Business Administration lending, complemented by cash management and online banking solutions.

Operating a network of branches and lending offices concentrated in both Southern and Northern California, Banc of California seeks to support local businesses and communities with personalized service and regional expertise.