Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 362,300 shares, a growth of 6.5% from the December 31st total of 340,300 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 69,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.2 days. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, DA Davidson cut their price target on Southern California Bancorp from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday.

Southern California Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BCAL traded down $0.65 on Monday, hitting $15.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 58,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 68,960. The company has a market capitalization of $513.11 million, a PE ratio of 83.95 and a beta of 1.11. Southern California Bancorp has a 1 year low of $12.30 and a 1 year high of $18.49. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.50.

Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ:BCAL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.08. Southern California Bancorp had a return on equity of 8.97% and a net margin of 2.94%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Southern California Bancorp will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern California Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Banc Funds Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern California Bancorp by 288.1% during the third quarter. Banc Funds Co. LLC now owns 1,412,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,886,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048,281 shares during the last quarter. Fourthstone LLC boosted its position in Southern California Bancorp by 52.3% in the third quarter. Fourthstone LLC now owns 2,696,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,882,000 after purchasing an additional 925,904 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Southern California Bancorp by 193.1% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 785,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,612,000 after buying an additional 517,217 shares during the period. Curi RMB Capital LLC increased its holdings in Southern California Bancorp by 500.9% during the third quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 393,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,819,000 after buying an additional 327,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern California Bancorp by 105.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 542,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,020,000 after acquiring an additional 278,874 shares during the last quarter. 55.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Southern California Bancorp

Southern California Bancorp operates as the holding company for Bank of Southern California, N.A. that provides various financial products to individuals, professionals, and small-to medium-sized businesses. The company offers checking, personal and business savings, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.