Northern Trust Corp Sells 42,847 Shares of Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp has reduced its stake in Banc of California by 2.6%, selling 42,847 shares and holding approximately 1.00% of the company's stock valued at $22.5 million.
• Institutional investors now own 86.88% of Banc of California's stock, with several funds increasing their positions significantly in the first quarter.
• Banc of California recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.4%.

Northern Trust Corp trimmed its position in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,586,665 shares of the bank's stock after selling 42,847 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned 1.00% of Banc of California worth $22,515,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BANC. Algert Global LLC increased its position in Banc of California by 2.6% during the first quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 977,234 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,867,000 after acquiring an additional 24,560 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 21.7% during the 1st quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 27,246 shares of the bank's stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 4,861 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Banc of California by 53.8% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 408,356 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,795,000 after purchasing an additional 142,819 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Banc of California in the 1st quarter worth approximately $410,000. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 27.3% in the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 436,850 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,199,000 after buying an additional 93,667 shares during the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banc of California Price Performance

Shares of BANC traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $16.89. 781,978 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,358,865. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $15.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.30. Banc of California, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.52 and a 52-week high of $18.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $2.50 billion, a PE ratio of 25.98 and a beta of 0.71.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.03. Banc of California had a net margin of 8.30% and a return on equity of 7.37%. 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 firm earned $0.12 earnings per share. Banc of California's revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Banc of California

In other Banc of California news, insider Hamid Hussain sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.59, for a total transaction of $331,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 66,444 shares in the company, valued at $1,102,305.96. The trade was a 23.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 37,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total transaction of $532,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,280,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,379,976. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 95,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,390,420 over the last ninety days. 2.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on BANC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on Banc of California from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Banc of California in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated 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. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $17.33.

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.