California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) Rating Increased to Moderate Buy at Raymond James Financial

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Raymond James Financial to a “moderate buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on BCAL. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of California BanCorp from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on California BanCorp from $23.50 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of California BanCorp in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Zacks Research raised California BanCorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Stephens upped their price target on California BanCorp from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $24.50.

California BanCorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ BCAL opened at $21.36 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.38. California BanCorp has a one year low of $15.85 and a one year high of $22.00. The firm has a market cap of $686.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.92.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. California BanCorp had a net margin of 26.01% and a return on equity of 10.44%. The firm had revenue of $44.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.07 million. Equities analysts predict that California BanCorp will post 1.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other California BanCorp news, Director Lester Machado sold 7,500 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $158,925.00. Following the sale, the director owned 22,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $474,465.29. This trade represents a 25.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 8.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in California BanCorp by 38.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,882,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,822,000 after acquiring an additional 802,947 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in California BanCorp in the second quarter valued at $40,129,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in California BanCorp by 4.6% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 795,309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,093,000 after acquiring an additional 34,945 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in California BanCorp in the second quarter valued at $16,501,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of California BanCorp by 49.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 470,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,331,000 after purchasing an additional 155,744 shares during the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About California BanCorp

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.