Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) shares gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $13.95, but opened at $13.53. Banc of California shares last traded at $13.94, with a volume of 281,469 shares changing hands.

The bank reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.07). Banc of California had a positive return on equity of 2.25% and a negative net margin of 29.10%. The company had revenue of $522.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $296.02 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is currently -12.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BANC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Banc of California from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $16.00 to $18.00 in a report on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Banc of California to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Banc of California from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective on shares of Banc of California in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Banc of California has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Banc of California news, Director Richard J. Lashley purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $21.40 per share, for a total transaction of $214,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 7.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banc of California

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Banc of California by 2,466.2% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,899 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,825 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Banc of California in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in Banc of California in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Lee Financial Co acquired a new position in Banc of California in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC acquired a new position in Banc of California in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Banc of California Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.23 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.32.

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.