Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Increases Position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,252,528 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 19,076 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 0.79% of Banc of California worth $19,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PL Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Banc of California by 1,446.0% during the fourth quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 46,754,426 shares of the bank's stock worth $722,823,000 after acquiring an additional 43,730,207 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its stake in Banc of California by 93.2% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 2,476,387 shares of the bank's stock worth $36,477,000 after acquiring an additional 1,194,839 shares in the last quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Banc of California by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,281,410 shares of the bank's stock worth $35,270,000 after acquiring an additional 221,125 shares in the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. boosted its stake in Banc of California by 589.8% during the third quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 1,732,894 shares of the bank's stock worth $25,526,000 after acquiring an additional 1,481,692 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in Banc of California during the third quarter worth about $21,207,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.88% of the company's stock.

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Banc of California Stock Performance

BANC stock traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $14.05. 5,918,683 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,095,029. Banc of California, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.88 and a 52-week high of $18.08. The stock has a market cap of $2.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.08 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock's 50-day moving average is $15.21 and its 200 day moving average is $15.40.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.05. Banc of California had a net margin of 7.06% and a return on equity of 6.20%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Banc of California, Inc. will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Banc of California Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. Banc of California's dividend payout ratio is currently 71.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BANC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective 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 dropped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Banc of California from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James upped their target price on shares of Banc of California from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Banc of California in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $18.18.

Banc of California Company Profile

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.