Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Acquires 53,506 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 308.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 70,856 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 53,506 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $1,173,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Banc of California during the second quarter valued at about $17,400,000. FJ Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Banc of California by 265.8% in the 2nd quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 1,365,440 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $19,184,000 after acquiring an additional 992,154 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Banc of California by 21.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,410,938 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $76,024,000 after acquiring an additional 957,693 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its position in Banc of California by 101.0% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,392,277 shares of the bank’s stock worth $19,561,000 after acquiring an additional 699,464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Banc of California by 63.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,797,082 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,249,000 after purchasing an additional 698,426 shares during the period. 86.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Banc of California Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BANC opened at $19.98 on Friday. Banc of California, Inc. has a 1 year low of $11.52 and a 1 year high of $21.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.93 and a beta of 0.69. The company’s 50-day moving average is $19.70 and its 200 day moving average is $17.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.05. Banc of California had a return on equity of 8.66% and a net margin of 12.59%.The firm had revenue of $292.93 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $288.41 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BANC. Citigroup raised Banc of California from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $18.00 to $21.50 in a research note on Monday, October 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Banc of California from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Banc of California from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $20.86.

Banc of California Company 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.