Algert Global LLC Raises Stake in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 2.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 977,234 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,560 shares during the quarter. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $13,867,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,913,012 shares of the bank’s stock worth $168,716,000 after buying an additional 644,330 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Banc of California by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,575,301 shares of the bank’s stock worth $135,874,000 after purchasing an additional 50,452 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Banc of California by 274.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,393,076 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,377,000 after purchasing an additional 3,953,380 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Banc of California by 127.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,453,245 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $63,192,000 after purchasing an additional 2,495,043 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Banc of California by 2,119.0% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,876,914 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $44,477,000 after purchasing an additional 2,747,262 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Banc of California Trading Down 1.5%

NYSE:BANC opened at $15.55 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $14.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.27. The stock has a market cap of $2.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.92 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Banc of California, Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.52 and a 12 month high of $18.08.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $272.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $278.43 million. Banc of California had a return on equity of 7.37% and a net margin of 8.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.12 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio is 61.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BANC. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Banc of California from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Banc of California in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $18.00 price objective for the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 price target (up previously from $17.00) on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Olivia I. Lindsay sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.58, for a total transaction of $149,380.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $419,649.16. This represents a 26.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 37,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total transaction of $532,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,280,280 shares in the company, valued at $32,379,976. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 86,000 shares of company stock worth $1,208,000 over the last three months. 2.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Banc of California

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.