Citigroup Initiates Coverage on Banc of California (NYSE:BANC)

Citigroup began coverage on shares of Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) in a research report issued on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a “neutral” rating and a $15.00 price target on the bank’s stock. Citigroup’s target price points to a potential upside of 3.52% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on BANC. Raymond James upgraded shares of Banc of California from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $16.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Banc of California in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Banc of California from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Banc of California currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $16.45.

Banc of California Price Performance

Banc of California stock opened at $14.49 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89. The company has a market capitalization of $2.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.12 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.88. Banc of California has a 1 year low of $9.96 and a 1 year high of $15.54.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.10 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $492.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $271.42 million. Banc of California had a negative net margin of 21.99% and a positive return on equity of 2.12%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Banc of California will post 0.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Richard J. Lashley sold 75,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total value of $1,050,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 719,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,077,564. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 7.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Banc of California

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in Banc of California by 146.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,143 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Banc of California in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Banc of California in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Banc of California by 32.3% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mendon Capital Advisors Corp purchased a new position in Banc of California during the 2nd quarter worth $102,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.88% of the company’s stock.

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.