Nuveen LLC Makes New $6.39 Million Investment in Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 450,312 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $6,390,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.28% of Banc of California as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 2.7% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 686,067 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,735,000 after acquiring an additional 17,990 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 1,287.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 48,799 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $692,000 after acquiring an additional 45,281 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 33.4% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 132,004 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,041,000 after acquiring an additional 33,017 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 49.4% in the first quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 80,021 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,135,000 after acquiring an additional 26,446 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 54.5% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 116,822 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,806,000 after acquiring an additional 41,217 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Banc of California

In other news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 37,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total value of $532,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,280,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,379,976. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Olivia I. Lindsay sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.58, for a total value of $149,380.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,902 shares in the company, valued at $419,649.16. The trade was a 26.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 86,000 shares of company stock worth $1,208,000 in the last ninety days. 2.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Banc of California Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BANC opened at $16.2930 on Monday. Banc of California, Inc. has a twelve month low of $11.52 and a twelve month high of $18.08. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $14.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 25.07 and a beta of 0.69.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.03. Banc of California had a return on equity of 7.37% and a net margin of 8.30%.The company had revenue of $272.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $278.43 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BANC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Banc of California from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price target (up previously from $17.00) on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Banc of California currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.33.

Banc of California Profile

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.