Banc of California (NYSE:BANC) Raised to "Overweight" at Wells Fargo & Company

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report released on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $20.00 price target on the bank's stock, up from their previous price target of $17.00. Wells Fargo & Company's price target would suggest a potential upside of 26.58% from the company's previous close.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on BANC. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Banc of California from $16.50 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James boosted their target price on Banc of California from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Banc of California from $17.50 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Banc of California from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Banc of California in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Banc of California has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.10.

Banc of California Trading Up 1.9 %

Banc of California stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $15.80. 2,462,282 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,710,261. Banc of California has a fifty-two week low of $11.88 and a fifty-two week high of $18.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.51 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.70 and a beta of 1.14. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $16.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.76.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $431.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $229.46 million. Banc of California had a positive return on equity of 2.93% and a negative net margin of 20.75%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Banc of California will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banc of California

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Banc of California by 32.3% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the bank's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 734 shares during the period. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Banc of California by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC now owns 98,420 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,460,000 after purchasing an additional 772 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Banc of California by 4.5% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,082 shares of the bank's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 779 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 5.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,659 shares of the bank's stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Banc of California by 2.6% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 77,384 shares of the bank's stock valued at $989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,939 shares during the period. 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.