Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Tuesday . 5,198,229 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 118% from the previous session’s volume of 2,383,190 shares.The stock last traded at $19.7650 and had previously closed at $20.38.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on BANC shares. Wall Street Zen raised Banc of California from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Banc of California from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Citigroup upgraded shares of Banc of California from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $18.00 to $21.50 in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Banc of California from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $20.86.

Banc of California Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.84 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.05. Banc of California had a return on equity of 8.66% and a net margin of 12.59%.The company had revenue of $292.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $288.41 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.90%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BANC. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Banc of California during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its stake in shares of Banc of California by 145.1% in the 3rd quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 4,181 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 2,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Banc of California during the 3rd quarter valued at $70,000. 86.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Banc of California Company Profile

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.