Ieq Capital LLC Acquires 22,715 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC increased its stake in Banc of California by 151.8% in the first quarter, acquiring a total of 37,678 shares valued at approximately $535,000.
• Multiple institutional investors have elevated their positions in Banc of California, with T. Rowe Price increasing their stake by 18.6%, now owning over 12.9 million shares worth around $183.6 million.
• Banc of California announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 to be paid on October 1st, representing a 2.4% yield based on its current share price.

Ieq Capital LLC raised its stake in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 151.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,678 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 22,715 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC's holdings in Banc of California were worth $535,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 1.5% in the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 75,563 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,072,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 11.1% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 12,802 shares of the bank's stock valued at $182,000 after buying an additional 1,276 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 14,370 shares of the bank's stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 1,299 shares in the last quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 2.5% in the first quarter. Cable Hill Partners LLC now owns 67,093 shares of the bank's stock valued at $904,000 after buying an additional 1,613 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peregrine Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 0.5% in the first quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC now owns 432,553 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,138,000 after buying an additional 2,027 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on BANC. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Banc of California from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $18.00 price objective (up from $17.00) on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Friday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $18.00 price objective on the stock. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $17.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Hamid Hussain sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.59, for a total transaction of $331,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 66,444 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,102,305.96. This trade represents a 23.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.69% of the company's stock.

Banc of California Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:BANC traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $16.82. 887,623 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,351,427. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.90. Banc of California, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.52 and a 52-week high of $18.08. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $15.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.31. The company has a market capitalization of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of 25.90 and a beta of 0.71.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $272.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $278.43 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.12 earnings per share. Banc of California's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Banc of California's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.54%.

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.