Hodges Capital Management Inc. Buys 77,012 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Hodges Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 5.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,462,302 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 77,012 shares during the quarter. Banc of California comprises about 2.1% of Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $25,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Banc of California by 243.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,430,938 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $56,782,000 after buying an additional 2,433,394 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Banc of California by 45.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,053,402 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,635,000 after buying an additional 1,576,914 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California in the 2nd quarter worth $17,400,000. North Reef Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Banc of California in the 4th quarter worth $22,312,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 276.5% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,278,974 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $21,167,000 after acquiring an additional 939,318 shares in the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings lowered Banc of California from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Barclays cut their target price on Banc of California from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Banc of California from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $22.56.

Banc of California Stock Performance

NYSE:BANC opened at $20.32 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $3.13 billion, a PE ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 0.73. Banc of California, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $13.96 and a fifty-two week high of $21.61.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $286.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $291.28 million. Banc of California had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.26 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.64%.

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.