Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,713 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 3,410 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $635,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BANC. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of Banc of California by 146.3% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,143 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Banc of California during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Banc of California in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Banc of California in the first quarter worth $60,000. Finally, Simplicity Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banc of California during the second quarter worth $132,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Banc of California

In other Banc of California news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total transaction of $1,050,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 719,826 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,077,564. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 7.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Banc of California Stock Performance

NYSE BANC opened at $15.38 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $13.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.90. The company has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a PE ratio of -4.62 and a beta of 1.13. Banc of California, Inc. has a 1 year low of $9.96 and a 1 year high of $15.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $492.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 last year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Banc of California, Inc. will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is -12.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BANC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Banc of California from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. 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 note on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Banc of California from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $14.00 price objective on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Banc of California presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.72.

About Banc of California

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.