Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Grows Holdings in Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. dramatically increased its stake in Banc of California during the fourth quarter, ending with 406,530 shares valued at about $7.84 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with Banc of California carrying a consensus "Buy" rating and an average target price of $22.31, despite some mixed target adjustments from major firms.
• The bank reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.39 per share, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share, equal to a 2.5% yield.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 387,071.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 406,530 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 406,425 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned about 0.27% of Banc of California worth $7,842,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BANC. Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in Banc of California by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 37,460 shares of the bank's stock worth $620,000 after buying an additional 585 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Banc of California by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,804 shares of the bank's stock worth $179,000 after buying an additional 777 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Banc of California by 19.8% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,297 shares of the bank's stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 874 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in Banc of California by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 30,742 shares of the bank's stock worth $593,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in Banc of California by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 23,048 shares of the bank's stock worth $410,000 after buying an additional 1,222 shares during the period. 86.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BANC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Banc of California from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $20.50 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $22.31.

Banc of California Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Banc of California stock opened at $18.83 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $18.79. Banc of California, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.24 and a 12-month high of $21.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.37 and a beta of 0.75.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. Banc of California had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The business had revenue of $286.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $291.28 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Banc of California's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.64%.

Banc of California Company Profile

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.

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