Banc of California up after Raymond James upgrades to 'outperform'
17/09/2024 15:16
** Shares of U.S. regional lender Banc of California
BANC.N rise ~1% to $14.39 in morning trading
** Raymond James upgrades BANC's rating to "outperform" from
"market perform" citing benefits from upcoming interest rate
cuts
** "All in, given the significant likelihood of Fed rate
cuts and BANC being one of the largest beneficiaries of down
rates, leaves us with an improving fundamental outlook for the
company" - Brokerage
** Interest rate cuts are broadly expected to help regional
lenders by reducing elevated deposit costs, improving loan
demand and easing pressure on their commercial real estate loan
portfolios
** Raymond James adds co's management has been active in
optimizing its balance sheet and expects BANC to approach its
profitability targets by year-end 2026
** Brokerage maintained a PT of $16, which implies an upside
of ~12% to stock's last close
** Including session moves, BANC up ~7% YTD
(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru)
((Manya.Saini@thomsonreuters.com))