California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BCAL. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of California BanCorp from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of California BanCorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. DA Davidson increased 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. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of California BanCorp in a report on Thursday, August 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of California BanCorp from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $24.50.

California BanCorp Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $701.19 million, a PE ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $21.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.64.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $44.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.07 million. California BanCorp had a return on equity of 10.44% and a net margin of 26.01%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that California BanCorp will post 1.75 EPS for the current year.

California BanCorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. This is a positive change from California BanCorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. California BanCorp’s dividend payout ratio is 21.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at California BanCorp

In other news, Director Lester Machado sold 7,500 shares of California BanCorp 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 transaction, the director directly owned 22,391 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $474,465.29. This trade represents a 25.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 8.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California BanCorp

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of California BanCorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,129,000. Algebris UK Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of California BanCorp during the second quarter worth approximately $8,360,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in California BanCorp during the first quarter valued at approximately $997,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in California BanCorp by 4.6% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 795,309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,093,000 after purchasing an additional 34,945 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mendon Capital Advisors Corp increased its stake in California BanCorp by 58.7% in the 1st quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp now owns 404,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,165,000 after buying an additional 149,491 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

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.