California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 745,043 shares, a drop of 19.3% from the March 31st total of 923,687 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 208,099 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 2.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

California BanCorp Stock Performance

Shares of BCAL stock opened at $18.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $605.71 million, a P/E ratio of 9.76 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $18.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.47. California BanCorp has a fifty-two week low of $14.07 and a fifty-two week high of $20.47.

California BanCorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $46.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $45.03 million. California BanCorp had a net margin of 26.60% and a return on equity of 11.36%. On average, research analysts forecast that California BanCorp will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

California BanCorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 24th were issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 24th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. California BanCorp’s payout ratio is 20.73%.

Insider Transactions at California BanCorp

In related news, Director David J. Volk purchased 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $18.64 per share, for a total transaction of $503,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $525,554.80. The trade was a 2,259.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Jean Carandang sold 8,000 shares of California BanCorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.90, for a total transaction of $143,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 37,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $665,414.60. This represents a 17.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 14.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BCAL. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of California BanCorp by 26,512.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 2,121 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of California BanCorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of California BanCorp by 508.7% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,862 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of California BanCorp by 143.9% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of California BanCorp in the third quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BCAL. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of California BanCorp from $21.50 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of California BanCorp from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.67.

California BanCorp Company Profile

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.