Rafferty Asset Management LLC Purchases 55,954 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 371,335 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 55,954 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $6,146,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in Banc of California in the third quarter valued at $912,000. ARGA Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Banc of California during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,730,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Banc of California by 308.4% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 70,856 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,173,000 after buying an additional 53,506 shares during the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Banc of California by 338.7% during the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 166,298 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,752,000 after buying an additional 128,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 63.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,797,082 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,249,000 after acquiring an additional 698,426 shares in the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Banc of California Price Performance

NYSE:BANC opened at $18.30 on Tuesday. Banc of California, Inc. has a 12-month low of $11.52 and a 12-month high of $21.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $20.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $292.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $288.41 million. Banc of California had a return on equity of 8.66% and a net margin of 12.59%.During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Banc of California Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. This is a positive change from Banc of California’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on BANC shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Banc of California from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on Banc of California from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Banc of California in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Banc of California from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Banc of California currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

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.