Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) Short Interest Down 10.6% in August

by · The Markets Daily

Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC – Get Free Report) was the target of a large decrease in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 11,940,000 shares, a decrease of 10.6% from the August 15th total of 13,350,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.6 days.

Banc of California Trading Up 3.2 %

BANC traded up $0.45 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $14.69. 4,036,205 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,323,233. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $13.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of -4.41 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89. Banc of California has a fifty-two week low of $9.96 and a fifty-two week high of $15.54.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $492.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $271.42 million. Banc of California had a negative net margin of 21.99% and a positive return on equity of 2.12%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Banc of California will post 0.61 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -12.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 75,000 shares of Banc of California stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total value of $1,050,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 719,826 shares in the company, valued at $10,077,564. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 7.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Banc of California

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BANC. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp acquired a new stake in Banc of California in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $102,000. Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in Banc of California during the second quarter worth $182,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 77,384 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,939 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Banc of California in the second quarter valued at approximately $166,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Banc of California by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 305,456 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,904,000 after acquiring an additional 21,365 shares during the period. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Banc of California from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Banc of California from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.72.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on Banc of California

About Banc of California

(Get Free Report)

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.

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