Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) have received an average rating of “Buy” from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $22.6875.

BANC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Banc of California from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a report on Tuesday, April 28th.

Institutional Trading of Banc of California

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BANC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,951,795 shares of the bank’s stock worth $191,970,000 after acquiring an additional 438,320 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Banc of California by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 915,325 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $17,657,000 after acquiring an additional 96,372 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Banc of California by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 598,427 shares of the bank’s stock worth $11,544,000 after purchasing an additional 132,328 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Banc of California by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,317,363 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,702,000 after purchasing an additional 187,999 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Banc of California during the 4th quarter worth about $3,740,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Banc of California Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE BANC opened at $21.28 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.30. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of 16.24 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Banc of California has a 12 month low of $13.96 and a 12 month high of $21.93.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. Banc of California had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 13.58%.The firm had revenue of $286.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $291.28 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.26 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Banc of California will post 1.71 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is 36.64%.

About Banc of California

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.