Banc of California Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:BANC)

Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 7,500 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 424% compared to the typical volume of 1,432 call options.

Banc of California Stock Performance

Shares of BANC opened at $20.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $18.78 and a 200-day moving average of $19.02. The company has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a PE ratio of 15.39 and a beta of 0.74. Banc of California has a one year low of $13.24 and a one year high of $21.61.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $286.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $291.28 million. Banc of California had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 13.58%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Banc of California will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Banc of California’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.64%.

Institutional Trading of Banc of California

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BANC. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 74,043 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,050,000 after buying an additional 6,364 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 209.4% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 103,044 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,462,000 after buying an additional 69,739 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 82,689 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,173,000 after buying an additional 3,611 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,796,996 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $53,879,000 after buying an additional 297,680 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Banc of California by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 441,856 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,270,000 after buying an additional 4,263 shares during the period. 86.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BANC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Banc of California from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Banc of California in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Banc of California from $20.50 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Banc of California from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Banc of California from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $22.31.

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.