Sippican Capital Advisors Increases Stock Position in Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Sippican Capital Advisors increased its position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 127,895 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,539 shares during the quarter. Banc of California accounts for 1.3% of Sippican Capital Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Sippican Capital Advisors owned 0.09% of Banc of California worth $1,797,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BANC. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Banc of California in the fourth quarter valued at $210,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Banc of California by 1,287.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 48,799 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $692,000 after acquiring an additional 45,281 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Banc of California during the 1st quarter valued at $695,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Banc of California by 183.6% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 57,319 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $813,000 after acquiring an additional 37,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Banc of California by 74.0% during the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 42,316 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 18,000 shares during the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banc of California Stock Down 6.4%

Shares of NYSE:BANC opened at $16.48 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.35 and a beta of 0.68. Banc of California, Inc. has a 1-year low of $11.52 and a 1-year high of $18.24. The company’s fifty day moving average is $16.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 13th. The bank reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $315.66 million for the quarter. Banc of California had a net margin of 8.30% and a return on equity of 7.37%. Equities analysts anticipate that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 15th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Banc of California

In related news, insider Hamid Hussain sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.59, for a total value of $331,800.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 66,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,102,305.96. This trade represents a 23.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on BANC. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Banc of California from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective (up from $17.00) on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Banc of California from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $17.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Banc of California from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.70.

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.