Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) Upgraded to Outperform by Raymond James

Raymond James upgraded shares of Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $16.00 target price on the bank’s stock.

BANC has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Banc of California from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Banc of California from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Wedbush restated a neutral rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Stephens reiterated an equal weight rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $15.72.

Banc of California Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE BANC opened at $14.69 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $13.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89. Banc of California has a 52-week low of $9.96 and a 52-week high of $15.54. The stock has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of -4.41 and a beta of 1.13.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $492.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $271.42 million. Banc of California had a negative net margin of 21.99% and a positive return on equity of 2.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Banc of California will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -12.01%.

Insider Transactions at Banc of California

In related news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 719,826 shares in the company, valued at $10,077,564. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 7.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banc of California

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp bought a new stake in shares of Banc of California in the 2nd quarter valued at about $102,000. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Banc of California in the second quarter valued at approximately $182,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Banc of California by 2.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 77,384 shares of the bank’s stock worth $989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,939 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Banc of California during the second quarter worth $166,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Banc of California by 7.5% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 305,456 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,904,000 after purchasing an additional 21,365 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

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.