California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 416,873 shares, an increase of 21.6% from the February 26th total of 342,802 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 147,446 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at California BanCorp

In other California BanCorp news, Director David J. Volk sold 2,346,104 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.95, for a total transaction of $44,458,670.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,664.55. This represents a 99.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Jean Carandang sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.90, for a total value of $143,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 37,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $665,414.60. This represents a 17.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 14.84% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On California BanCorp

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BCAL. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in California BanCorp by 12.4% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 545 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in California BanCorp by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in California BanCorp by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 11,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of California BanCorp by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 69,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $998,000 after purchasing an additional 846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of California BanCorp by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,988 shares of the company’s stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of California BanCorp in a report on Monday, December 29th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of California BanCorp from $22.50 to $21.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of California BanCorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, California BanCorp currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.50.

California BanCorp Price Performance

California BanCorp stock opened at $17.84 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $576.77 million, a P/E ratio of 9.24 and a beta of 1.11. California BanCorp has a one year low of $11.87 and a one year high of $20.47. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $18.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $18.26.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $46.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.03 million. California BanCorp had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 26.60%. Sell-side analysts expect that California BanCorp will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California BanCorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 24th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 24th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. California BanCorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.73%.

California BanCorp Company 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.