LSV Asset Management Invests $3.74 Million in Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 193,900 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $3,740,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the 3rd quarter worth about $912,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,054,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 308.4% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 70,856 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 53,506 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 445.0% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 144,758 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,792,000 after purchasing an additional 118,198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,951,795 shares of the bank’s stock worth $191,970,000 after purchasing an additional 438,320 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BANC. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Banc of California from $20.50 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Banc of California from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $22.31.

Banc of California Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE BANC opened at $19.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Banc of California, Inc. has a 1 year low of $13.24 and a 1 year high of $21.61. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $18.22 and its 200-day moving average is $18.83.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $286.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $291.28 million. Banc of California had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.64%.

Banc of California Profile

Banc of California, N.A. is a full-service commercial bank headquartered in Santa Ana, California, offering a broad spectrum of banking products and services to corporate and individual customers. The bank focuses on serving middle-market businesses, professional service firms, real estate investors and developers, and entrepreneurs throughout California. Its core offerings include deposit accounts, treasury management services, commercial real estate lending, equipment finance, lines of credit and Small Business Administration lending, complemented by cash management and online banking solutions.

Operating a network of branches and lending offices concentrated in both Southern and Northern California, Banc of California seeks to support local businesses and communities with personalized service and regional expertise.