GSA Capital Partners LLP Purchases 76,359 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Key Points

• GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in Banc of California, Inc. by 116.8% during the 1st quarter, owning 141,746 shares worth approximately $2,011,000 as of its latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors, including Mackenzie Financial Corp and TD Asset Management Inc, also boosted their positions in Banc of California during the same quarter, reflecting strong interest from hedge funds and institutional investors overall.
• The recent earnings report indicated a net profit of $0.31 per share, outperforming analyst expectations, with a revenue increase of 5.2% year-over-year.

GSA Capital Partners LLP grew its stake in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 116.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 141,746 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 76,359 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP owned 0.09% of Banc of California worth $2,011,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Banc of California during the 4th quarter worth $1,343,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Banc of California by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 637,423 shares of the bank's stock worth $9,855,000 after purchasing an additional 54,238 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Banc of California during the 4th quarter worth $467,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Banc of California in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $102,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of Banc of California by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 21,276 shares of the bank's stock valued at $329,000 after purchasing an additional 3,258 shares during the period. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banc of California Stock Performance

Shares of BANC stock traded down $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $14.14. The stock had a trading volume of 1,421,118 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,428,251. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $14.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Banc of California, Inc. has a one year low of $11.52 and a one year high of $18.08. The firm has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a PE ratio of 21.87 and a beta of 0.67.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $278.43 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.12 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Banc of California's payout ratio is presently 61.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Banc of California from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an "outperform" rating and issued 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $17.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Banc of California news, insider Olivia I. Lindsay sold 11,000 shares of Banc of California stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.58, for a total transaction of $149,380.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,902 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $419,649.16. The trade was a 26.25% 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, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 37,500 shares of Banc of California stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total value of $532,500.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,280,280 shares in the company, valued at $32,379,976. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 86,000 shares of company stock worth $1,208,000 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.69% of the company's stock.

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.