Wellington Management Group LLP Raises Stock Holdings in Banc of California, Inc. $BANC

Key Points

• Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Banc of California by 16.5%, acquiring an additional 887,497 shares, now owning approximately 3.95% of the bank's stock valued at $89.12 million.
• Banc of California reported quarterly earnings with an EPS of $0.31, exceeding expectations, and a revenue of $272.85 million, marking a 5.2% year-over-year increase.
• Barclays and Wells Fargo recently boosted their price targets for Banc of California's stock, with Barclays raising it from $18.00 to $19.00, reflecting positive analyst sentiment.

Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,280,573 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 887,497 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 3.95% of Banc of California worth $89,121,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in Banc of California by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 16,341 shares of the bank's stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Banc of California by 1.5% during the 1st 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 raised its position in shares of Banc of California by 11.1% during 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 during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted 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 worth $222,000 after buying an additional 1,299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cable Hill Partners LLC lifted 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 worth $904,000 after buying an additional 1,613 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.88% of the company's stock.

Banc of California Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:BANC traded up $0.20 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $16.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 808,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,375,159. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.45 billion, a PE ratio of 25.50 and a beta of 0.69. Banc of California, Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.52 and a 12 month high of $18.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $14.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.24.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $272.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $278.43 million. Banc of California had a return on equity of 7.37% and a net margin of 8.30%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Olivia I. Lindsay sold 11,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 5th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $419,649.16. This trade represents a 26.25% decrease in their position. 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 Banc of California stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total transaction of $532,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,280,280 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,379,976. This represents a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 86,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,208,000. 2.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BANC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $15.00 target price on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $18.00 target price (up from $17.00) on shares of Banc of California in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Banc of California from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Banc of California in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.