California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• California BanCorp shares reached a new 52-week high of $22.10, with the stock supported by a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average analyst price target of $24.50.
• The company’s latest quarterly earnings beat expectations, reporting $0.44 in EPS versus the $0.40 estimate, although revenue of $44.08 million fell slightly short of forecasts.
• California BanCorp raised its quarterly dividend to $0.12 per share, equivalent to an annualized $0.48 dividend and a 2.2% yield; institutional investors own 55.4% of the stock.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $22.10 and last traded at $21.6820, with a volume of 16144 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $21.82.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BCAL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research cut California BanCorp from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of California BanCorp from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of California BanCorp from $23.50 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of California BanCorp from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of California BanCorp in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $24.50.

California BanCorp Trading Down 0.0%

The company has a market cap of $701.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.64.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $44.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $45.07 million. California BanCorp had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 26.01%. As a group, research analysts expect that California BanCorp will post 1.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California BanCorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This is a positive change from California BanCorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. California BanCorp's payout ratio is presently 21.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at California BanCorp

In other news, Director Lester Machado sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.19, for a total value of $158,925.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,391 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $474,465.29. This represents a 25.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 8.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in California BanCorp in the second quarter worth approximately $51,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its stake in shares of California BanCorp by 178.2% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 55,679 shares of the company's stock worth $1,160,000 after buying an additional 35,664 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of California BanCorp by 439.4% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 6,565 shares of the company's stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 5,348 shares in the last quarter. Maloon Powers Pitre Higgins & Dennehy LLC acquired a new stake in shares of California BanCorp in the second quarter valued at $3,551,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of California BanCorp in the second quarter valued at $3,142,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.40% of the company's stock.

California BanCorp Company Profile

California BanCorp NASDAQ: BCAL is a bank holding company headquartered in California. Founded to address the diverse financial needs of businesses and individuals across the state, the company focuses on community-oriented banking solutions and operates under a locally based decision-making model.

Through its wholly owned banking subsidiary, California BanCorp offers a suite of deposit products including checking, savings, money market and certificate of deposit accounts. Its lending portfolio encompasses commercial and industrial loans, real estate and construction financing, as well as consumer lending products such as personal loans and home equity lines of credit.

In addition to core deposit and lending services, the company provides treasury and cash management services, online and mobile banking platforms, and merchant payment solutions designed to streamline operations for small to mid-sized enterprises.

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