Bank of Montreal Can Boosts Stock Holdings in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,341 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Banc of California were worth $253,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 19,026 shares of the bank’s stock worth $294,000 after acquiring an additional 5,135 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in Banc of California by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 121,201 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,874,000 after purchasing an additional 22,668 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors increased its stake in shares of Banc of California by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 20,082 shares of the bank’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Banc of California in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $332,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Banc of California by 274.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,393,076 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $83,377,000 after buying an additional 3,953,380 shares in the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banc of California Trading Down 1.9 %

NYSE BANC opened at $13.48 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $13.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.19. Banc of California, Inc. has a twelve month low of $11.52 and a twelve month high of $18.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.06 and a beta of 0.85.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.02. Banc of California had a return on equity of 6.20% and a net margin of 7.06%. The company had revenue of $266.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $272.36 million. Research analysts forecast that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is 71.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BANC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Banc of California from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Stephens dropped their price objective on Banc of California from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com raised Banc of California from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Banc of California from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $20.00 to $16.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Banc of California presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.73.

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.