Banc of California, Inc. $BANC Shares Bought by T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Banc of California, Inc. by 18.6%, owning approximately 8.15% of the bank's stock, valued at $183.6 million after acquiring an additional 2 million shares.
• Several institutional investors have also made significant changes to their stakes in Banc of California, with 86.88% of the company's shares now owned by institutional investors.
• Banc of California recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, reflecting a 2.5% yield and a payout ratio of 61.54%.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 18.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,942,131 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 2,029,119 shares during the quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned 8.15% of Banc of California worth $183,649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BANC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Banc of California by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,575,301 shares of the bank's stock worth $135,874,000 after acquiring an additional 50,452 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Banc of California by 16.5% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,280,573 shares of the bank's stock worth $89,121,000 after purchasing an additional 887,497 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 127.4% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,453,245 shares of the bank's stock worth $63,192,000 after purchasing an additional 2,495,043 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 2,119.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,876,914 shares of the bank's stock worth $44,477,000 after purchasing an additional 2,747,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. increased its holdings in Banc of California by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 1,858,527 shares of the bank's stock valued at $28,733,000 after buying an additional 125,633 shares during the last quarter. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Banc of California Stock Performance

NYSE:BANC traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $16.67. The stock had a trading volume of 320,637 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,372,373. The stock has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.64 and a beta of 0.69. 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 12-month low of $11.52 and a 12-month high of $18.08. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.24.

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

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Banc of California's payout ratio is presently 61.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Banc of California news, insider Olivia I. Lindsay sold 11,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.58, for a total value of $149,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 30,902 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $419,649.16. This trade represents a 26.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 37,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total transaction of $532,500.00. Following the sale, the director 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 86,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,208,000. Company insiders own 2.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Banc of California Company Profile

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.