Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. Purchases Shares of 55,113 Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 55,113 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $912,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. ARGA Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Banc of California during the third quarter worth approximately $1,730,000. Voya Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 338.7% during the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 166,298 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,752,000 after buying an additional 128,387 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 308.4% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 70,856 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,173,000 after buying an additional 53,506 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 63.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,797,082 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,249,000 after buying an additional 698,426 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Banc of California in the 2nd quarter worth $455,000. 86.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Banc of California Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BANC opened at $20.06 on Monday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.09. The company has a market cap of $3.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.00 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.90. Banc of California, Inc. has a one year low of $11.52 and a one year high of $21.61.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $292.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $288.41 million. Banc of California had a return on equity of 8.66% and a net margin of 12.59%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.28 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This is a positive change from Banc of California’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Banc of California’s payout ratio is presently 33.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Banc of California from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Citigroup raised Banc of California from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $18.00 to $21.50 in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Barclays boosted their target price on Banc of California from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Banc of California from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $20.86.

About Banc of California

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.