Centerbridge Partners L.P. Has $62.14 Million Stake in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Centerbridge Partners L.P. reduced its position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 34.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,019,545 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,078,015 shares during the period. Banc of California accounts for about 13.3% of Centerbridge Partners L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Centerbridge Partners L.P.’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $62,142,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BANC. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the fourth quarter worth about $178,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 65,184 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,008,000 after buying an additional 7,512 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Banc of California by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 485,575 shares of the bank’s stock worth $7,507,000 after buying an additional 61,693 shares during the period. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 1,858,527 shares of the bank’s stock worth $28,733,000 after purchasing an additional 125,633 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 277,477 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $4,290,000 after purchasing an additional 34,943 shares in the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James Andrew Barker acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $13.16 per share, with a total value of $131,600.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 169,680 shares in the company, valued at $2,232,988.80. The trade was a 6.26 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BANC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Banc of California from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Raymond James lifted their price target on Banc of California from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Banc of California from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Banc of California from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.25.

Banc of California Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE BANC opened at $13.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $2.19 billion, a PE ratio of 24.58 and a beta of 0.85. Banc of California, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.52 and a 52-week high of $18.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90. The business has a fifty day moving average of $13.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.14.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $266.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $272.36 million. Banc of California had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 7.06%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is 61.54%.

Banc of California 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.