Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 1,681 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its position in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 106,472 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,681 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Banc of California were worth $1,646,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Banc of California by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,556,614 shares of the bank’s stock worth $39,525,000 after purchasing an additional 62,269 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in Banc of California during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Banc of California by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 92,463 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,429,000 after acquiring an additional 11,276 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Banc of California during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of Banc of California by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 280,214 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,332,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600 shares during the period. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banc of California Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of BANC stock opened at $14.15 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.42. Banc of California, Inc. has a 52 week low of $11.88 and a 52 week high of $18.08. The stock has a market cap of $2.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.26 and a beta of 1.18. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.05. Banc of California had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 7.06%. Analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is currently 71.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BANC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Banc of California from $17.50 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com raised Banc of California from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Banc of California from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stephens decreased their target price on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Banc of California from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $17.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Banc of California currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $18.18.

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.