Citigroup Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Citigroup Inc. lowered its position in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 25.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 395,958 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 137,220 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $5,832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Banc of California by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,233,452 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $18,169,000 after buying an additional 44,951 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC raised its holdings in Banc of California by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 346,480 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,104,000 after purchasing an additional 5,005 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Banc of California in the 3rd quarter worth $748,000. LMR Partners LLP bought a new position in Banc of California in the 3rd quarter worth $832,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Banc of California by 30.1% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 81,187 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,196,000 after purchasing an additional 18,779 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Banc of California Stock Performance

Shares of BANC stock opened at $17.23 on Monday. Banc of California, Inc. has a one year low of $11.36 and a one year high of $18.08. The company’s 50-day moving average is $15.49 and its 200 day moving average is $14.27. The company has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.04 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.11. Banc of California had a negative net margin of 20.75% and a positive return on equity of 2.93%. The company had revenue of $431.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $229.46 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Banc of California, Inc. will post 0.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -9.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on BANC shares. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $16.50 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Banc of California from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $17.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.30.

Insider Activity at Banc of California

In other news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total transaction of $1,050,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 719,826 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,077,564. This trade represents a 9.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 7.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.