Banc of California Upgraded to Hold by StockNews.com

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) has received an upgrade in its rating from equities research analysts at StockNews.com. The firm changed their rating from "sell" to "hold" in a research note released to investors on Friday.

Banc of California has been discussed in multiple other reports lately. For instance, Wells Fargo & Company recently raised their rating on the bank's shares from "equal weight" to "overweight," also increasing their target price from $17.00 to $20.00 in a January 6th report. Similarly, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target from $17.50 to $20.00, rating the stock as "outperform" in a research note dated December 4th.

In another positive move, Wedbush raised their target price from $18.00 to $19.00 and assigned Banc of California an "outperform" rating in an October 23rd report. Citigroup initiated coverage with a "neutral" rating and set a price target of $15.00 on October 10th. Additionally, Raymond James raised their price target on the bank from $17.00 to $18.00, also giving it an "outperform" rating this past Friday. Overall, four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, while seven have issued a buy rating.

According to data from MarketBeat.com, Banc of California currently holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target price of $18.10.

Banc of California Stock Performance

On Friday, shares of Banc of California traded up by $0.30, bringing the stock price to $16.00. A total of 2,693,996 shares changed hands, compared to the average volume of 2,012,360 shares. The stock's 50-day simple moving average stands at $16.17, while its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.02. Banc of California has a market cap of $2.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.75, and a beta of 1.14. Over the past year, the stock reached a low of $11.88 and a high of $18.08. The company’s current ratio and quick ratio are both 0.89, and it has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Banc of California's most recent earnings report was announced on January 23rd, revealing earnings per share (EPS) of $0.28 for the quarter. This surpassed the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.05. The bank reported a return on equity of 2.93% but noted a negative net margin of 20.75%. Analysts predict that Banc of California will generate an EPS of 0.71 for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

In recent months, several hedge funds have adjusted their positions in Banc of California. For example, Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. increased its stake in the bank by 589.8% during the third quarter, now holding 1,732,894 shares valued at approximately $25.5 million after acquiring an additional 1,481,692 shares. Wellington Management Group LLP also entered a new position in the third quarter, valued at around $21.2 million.

Verition Fund Management LLC enhanced their holdings by 93.2% during the same timeframe, currently possessing 2,476,387 shares worth about $36.5 million after purchasing an additional 1,194,839 shares last quarter. Azora Capital LP made a new investment in Banc of California worth approximately $12.5 million. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position by 461.6% during the third quarter, holding 651,695 shares valued at around $9.6 million. Currently, hedge funds and other institutional investors own approximately 86.88% of the stock.

Company Overview

Banc of California, Inc. functions as the bank holding company for Banc of California, offering a broad range of banking products and services throughout California. The company provides various deposit products, including checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, demand deposits, time deposits, retirement accounts, and safe deposit boxes.

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