Head to Head Analysis: Pacific Alliance Bank (OTCMKTS:PFBN) versus Banc of California (NYSE:BANC)

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) and Pacific Alliance Bank (OTCMKTS:PFBN) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends and valuation.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Banc of California and Pacific Alliance Bank, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Banc of California	0	2	9	1	2.92
Pacific Alliance Bank	0	0	0	0	0.00

Banc of California presently has a consensus price target of $20.86, indicating a potential upside of 4.03%. Given Banc of California’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Banc of California is more favorable than Pacific Alliance Bank.

Volatility and Risk

Banc of California has a beta of 0.72, indicating that its share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Pacific Alliance Bank has a beta of 0.17, indicating that its share price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Banc of California and Pacific Alliance Bank’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Banc of California	12.59%	8.66%	0.76%
Pacific Alliance Bank	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Banc of California pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Pacific Alliance Bank pays an annual dividend of $0.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Banc of California pays out 33.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Banc of California and Pacific Alliance Bank”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Banc of California	$1.82 billion	1.67	$228.97 million	$1.18	17.00
Pacific Alliance Bank	$23.57 million	1.16	$1.43 million	N/A	N/A

Banc of California has higher revenue and earnings than Pacific Alliance Bank.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

86.9% of Banc of California shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Banc of California shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Banc of California beats Pacific Alliance Bank on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It also provides real estate loans to professional developers and real estate investors for the acquisition, construction, refinancing, renovation, and on-going operation of commercial real estate properties; commercial real estate mortgage, residential real estate mortgage, and real estate construction and land loans; commercial loans and leases, such as equipment finance, other asset-based, venture capital, secured business, warehouse, and other lending services; small business administration loans; and consumer loans comprising personal, auto, and other loans, as well as home equity and revolving lines of credit. In addition, the company offers international banking, multi-state deposit, and asset and investment management services, as well as cash and treasury management services; and online, mobile, remote deposit, and telephone banking services. It serves small and middle-market businesses, venture capital firms, non-profit organizations, business owners, entrepreneurs, professionals, and high-net worth individuals. Banc of California, Inc. was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

About Pacific Alliance Bank

Pacific Alliance Bank provides commercial and consumer banking products and services for small to midsize business owners, and employees in the United States. It offers checking, money market, savings, and individual retirement accounts; and certificates of deposit. The company also provides mortgage, commercial, term, commercial real estate, construction, and SBA loans; and lines of credit. In addition, it offers personal and business online services; and casher checks, check reorder, night deposit, direct deposit, safe deposit boxes, positive pay/check reconciliation, wire, debit card, and other services. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in San Gabriel, California.