Banc of California, Inc. to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.10

Banc of California, Inc. (NYSE:BANC) announced on November 8th, 2023, that it will issue a quarterly dividend. Shareholders who are on record as of December 16th will receive a payment of $0.10 per share. This dividend payment will be made on January 2nd, 2024. The annualized dividend total comes to $0.40, which gives a dividend yield of 2.45%. Notably, the ex-dividend date is also set for December 16th.

In recent years, Banc of California has demonstrated strong growth in its dividend payments, with an average increase of 18.6% annually over the last three years. The company's dividend payout ratio stands at 30.8%, indicating that its earnings are adequately covering the dividend payments. Analysts project that Banc of California will earn $1.33 per share in the upcoming year, suggesting that the anticipated future payout ratio will be approximately 30.1%, allowing the company to sustain its $0.40 annual dividend.

Stock Performance Insights

On Friday, Banc of California's stock experienced an increase of 1.0%, rising by $0.16 during the trading sessions to reach $16.31. The stock saw a trading volume of 2,554,962 shares which is slightly above its average volume of 2,541,043 shares. The company has noted a fifty-day moving average of $14.76 and a two-hundred-day moving average of $14.02. In the past twelve months, the stock has reached a low of $11.10 and a high of $16.92. Financial metrics for the company include a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89, and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Banc of California also released its quarterly earnings results on October 22nd, reporting earnings of $0.25 per share, surpassing the analyst consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.11. For the quarter, the company achieved a revenue total of $431.44 million, which significantly outperformed the projected revenue of $229.46 million set by analysts. The bank's net margin stood at -20.75%, while its return on equity was positive at 2.93%. In comparison to the previous year, the business reported earnings of $0.30 per share.

Insider Transactions and Analyst Ratings

In other news, Director Richard J. Lashley completed a stock transaction where he sold 75,000 shares on September 4th at an average price of $14.00, resulting in a total amount of $1,050,000. Following this transaction, he retained ownership of 719,826 shares valued at approximately $10,077,564, marking a 0.00% reduction in his stake in the company. This transaction has been documented with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Financial analysts have recently updated their price targets for Banc of California. A report from Wedbush lifted the stock's price objective from $18.00 to $19.00 and reaffirmed an “outperform” rating. Similarly, Raymond James upgraded its target from $16.00 to $17.00, while Wells Fargo raised its target from $16.00 to $17.00 as well, assigning an “equal weight” rating. Barclays has also transitioned from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating, elevating its target from $17.00 to $18.00. Meanwhile, Stephens increased their price target from $15.00 to $16.00 and maintained an “equal weight” rating. Currently, one analyst has a sell rating for the stock, four analysts have rated it as a hold, and six have given it a buy rating. The consensus rating for Banc of California is “Hold” with a target price estimate of $17.30.

About Banc of California

Banc of California, Inc. serves as the bank holding company for Banc of California, providing a variety of banking services and products primarily in California. The bank's offerings include various deposit products such as checking accounts, savings accounts, money markets, and retirement accounts. They also offer safe deposit boxes and certificates of deposit.

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