UPDATE: Banc of California, Irvine, CA (BANC)

BANC is sweeter without Sugarman.

Since I reviewed Banc of California in 2014, almost nothing about the bank is the same except its name. And that's a good thing!

Now, BANC investors can probably double their dough over the next four years. By then, its book value should approach $20 per share and earnings $2.00 per share.

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Disclosure: As of this posting, I own shares of BANC and may subsequently either dispose of them or purchase more.

Prospective Buyers	PacWest Bancorp, Los Angeles, CA (PACW) Umpqua Holdings, Portland, OR (UMPQ) Zions Bancorp, Salt Lake City, UT (ZION)
Financial Snapshot †as of 09/30/2017	Total assets: $10.3B† Tangible book value per share: $13.80† NPAs to assets: 0.2%† Price to book: 146% Market cap: $1.09B Dividend yield: 2.4% Trailing 12-month ROA: 0.73%† Trailing 12-month ROE: 7.93%† TARP: $0M* *Redeemed $19.3M 12/15/2010
Luminaries	Robert D. Sznewajs, Chairman Douglas H. Bowers, President and CEO John A. Bogler, Executive VP and CFO
Gold Stars	Sugarman and Co-Scoundrels are long gone.*  Thankfully, these high-performing, adult banking professionals are now in charge. Chairman Robert Sznewajs helped pull Michigan National Bank (MNCO) out of the ditch in the early 90’s, sold it to National Australia Bank and, more recently, presided over the turnaround and sale of West Coast Bancorp (WCBO). CEO Doug Bowers is a 35-year bank veteran who ran Square 1 Financial (SQBK) until its successful sale to PacWest in 2015. New board member Kirk Wycoff of Patriot Financial Partners is known for impeccable due diligence.  New board member Richard Lashley from PL Capital has maximized shareholder value in dozens of banks and thrifts. *For more of the backstory on how and why BANC went Sugarman-free, see this October 2016 exposé by Aurelius Three other reasons I am sweet on this now-Sugarman-free enterprise include: The size of combined stake PL Capital and Patriot Financial have in the game — a hefty 6,250,000 shares* worth $134M –gives me confidence there will be no more shenanigans here. CEO Bowers owns 92,000 shares worth $1.97M, 57,000 of which he bought in the open market last September. This tells me Bowers is confident in his ability to create value here. The OCC finished an exam of BANC late last summer, suggesting the problems Sugarman created have likely been reduced to mere crumbs by now.  *12.5% of BANC's outstanding shares
Sources	Banc of California website Q3 2017 Earnings Report SEP 2017 10-Q 2016 Annual Report Seeking Alpha Instablog by Aurelius SNL Financial Confidential interviews with shareholders and analysts

Solera National Bancorp, Lakewood, CO (SLRK)

A Case of Almost out of the Woods

Solera National has sure traveled a bumpy road since its de novo formation in 2007. Solera's shares have lost ground en route, too, dropping over half their value since the bank's initial capital raise at $10 per share.

Thankfully, new leaders in the driver's seat appear to be steering this one-branch bank along a more auspicious path, suggesting SLRK's current trading price of 71.5% of book value is wonderfully cheap. If I am correct, book value will soon exceed $7 and investors will pick up at least 60% as Solera makes the rest of its way out of the woods.

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Disclosure: As of this posting, I own shares of SLRK and may subsequently either dispose of them or purchase more.

Prospective Buyers	Although much larger than Solera, each of these regional players has a minor presence in Jefferson County, CO compared to Solera's #6 place in this neck of the woods. BOK Financial, Tulsa, OK (BOKF) CoBiz Financial, Denver, CO (COBZ) Zions Bancorp, Salt Lake City, UT (ZION)
Financial Snapshot †as of 03/31/2015	Total assets: $144M† Tangible book value per share: $6.86† NPAs to assets: 0.1%† Price to book: 71.5% Market cap: $13.2M Dividend yield: 0% Trailing 12-month return on assets: 0.27%† Trailing 12-month return on equity: 2.25%† TARP: $0
The Crew	Michael D. Quagliano, Chairman Robert Jay Fenton, President and CEO Melissa Larkin, Senior VP, Secretary and CFO
The Skinny	As a shareholder, I'm excited to be on the Solera wagon right now, because: The scoundrels are gone. After a bitter 2014 proxy fight exposed how their inflated salaries and poor performance were keeping Solera stuck in the woods, all of Solera's then incumbent directors resigned. Solera's new leaders are motivated to get out of the woods, too. Unlike the prior CEO, who didn't buy a single share of SLRK, Solera's new CEO Robert Fenton owns a respectable 75,000 shares. Chairman Quagliano owns 23% of all shares outstanding — 623,970 shares I'm sure he's hoping will bear fruit. Profits will naturally drive book value. No longer weighed down by excessive salaries and spending, the Solera National wagon is already picking up speed. SLRK's last quarter annualizes to 68 cents per share in earnings.  Banks as clean as Solera are selling at a premium. Were Solera National to obtain the 10% deposit premium being paid today for comparable banks, Solera's shareholders would net $10.25 per share, a breezy 113% above today's price.
Sources	Solera National Bank website 2013 Annual Report 2014 Proxy Statement SNL Financial Confidential interviews with shareholders

Banc of California, Irvine, CA (BANC)

A Case of Sticking it to the "Sugar" Man

What more can I say about Steven Sugarman's slippery hands in the Banc of California cookie jar than PL Capital already has in recent 13D filings? Isn't it high time these Scoundrels stop sweetening their salaries and start "Cleaning Up" like Sugarman's apparent doppelgänger and hero Barry Minkow's purporting to do?

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Disclosure: As of this posting, I own shares of BANC and may subsequently either dispose of them or purchase more.

Prospective Buyers	City National Corp, Los Angeles, CA (CYN) PacWest Bancorp, Los Angeles, CA (PACW) Zions Bancorp, Salt Lake City, UT (ZION)
Financial Snapshot (as of 03/31/2014)	Total assets: $4B Tangible book value per share: $9.94 NPAs to assets: 0.81% Price to book: 89.3% Market cap: $291.8M Dividend yield: 4.4% Trailing 12-month return on assets: 0.0% Trailing 12-month return on equity: -0.03% TARP: $0M* *Redeemed $19.3M 12/15/2010
Scoundrels	Steven A Sugarman, Chairman, President and CEO Chad T Brownstein, Vice Chairman Ronald J Nicolas, Executive VP and CFO
Red Flags	These Scoundrels have crushed tangible book value at BANC like a stale cookie from $18.47 in 2009 to today's crummy $9.94 BANC officers are compensating themselves like kids on a sugar high at a rate running almost seven times the national average and performance of banks like Royal Financial, for the "service" of producing over $2M in losses BANC ringleader Steven Sugarman bears too many uncanny resemblances to Barry Minkow for my comfort, including behavior sharply inconsistent with the books they author
Sources	Banc of California website PL Capital's 13D Amendment Exhibit to PL Capital's 13D Exhibit to PL Capital's 13D Amendment Pearl Meyer & Partners Report Article by Ron Kaye L.A. SNL Financial Confidential interviews with shareholders