Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) Upgraded by Wedbush to “Outperform”

Wedbush upgraded shares of Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $18.00 target price on the bank’s stock, up from their previous target price of $14.00.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Banc of California from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Stephens reissued an equal weight rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Banc of California from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded shares of Banc of California from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $16.28.

Banc of California Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of BANC stock opened at $15.03 on Tuesday. Banc of California has a twelve month low of $9.96 and a twelve month high of $15.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.90. The company has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.51 and a beta of 1.13.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.09). Banc of California had a positive return on equity of 2.12% and a negative net margin of 21.99%. The company had revenue of $492.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $271.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Banc of California will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Banc of California’s payout ratio is -12.01%.

Insider Activity at Banc of California

In related news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total value of $1,050,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 719,826 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,077,564. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 7.37% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banc of California

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BANC. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the first quarter worth $29,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in Banc of California in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Banc of California by 146.3% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,143 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Banc of California during the first quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, Mendon Capital Advisors Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California in the second quarter valued at approximately $102,000. 86.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Banc of California Company Profile

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.