Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Holdings in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 649,335 shares of the bank's stock after selling 35,434 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.41% of Banc of California worth $9,565,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Banc of California during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Banc of California by 32.3% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the bank's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 734 shares during the last quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp purchased a new position in shares of Banc of California during the second quarter worth $102,000. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new position in Banc of California during the third quarter valued at $158,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in Banc of California in the second quarter valued at $166,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on BANC shares. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Banc of California from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Raymond James boosted their price target on Banc of California from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup began coverage on Banc of California in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $15.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Banc of California from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $17.80.

Banc of California Price Performance

Shares of BANC stock traded down $0.11 on Tuesday, reaching $15.46. 1,013,941 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,301,449. The company has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.62 and a beta of 1.14. Banc of California, Inc. has a 1 year low of $11.88 and a 1 year high of $18.08. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $16.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89.

Banc of California (NYSE:BANC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The bank reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $431.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Banc of California, Inc. will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banc of California Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. Banc of California's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -9.37%.

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.