SAN DIEGO, Calif. - Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ: BCAL) and California BanCorp (NASDAQ: CALB) announced today that they have secured the necessary regulatory approvals from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco for their planned merger. This approval marks a significant step towards completing the merger, which is expected to finalize in the third quarter of 2024.
The agreement, initially dated January 30, 2024, stipulates that California BanCorp will merge into Southern California Bancorp. The merger remains subject to other closing conditions, including the approval of shareholders from both companies.
David Rainer, Chairman and CEO of Southern California Bancorp and Bank of Southern California, expressed his satisfaction with the development, stating that the regulatory green light is a key milestone in the merger process. Steve Shelton, CEO of California BanCorp, also conveyed optimism, suggesting that the union of the two companies would create a leading commercial banking franchise in California.
Southern California Bancorp, headquartered in San Diego, operates Bank of Southern California, N.A., serving clients through 13 branches across various counties in the region.
California BanCorp, trading under the symbol CALB, serves businesses and professionals in Northern California through California Bank of Commerce.
This news article is based on a press release statement.
InvestingPro Insights
As Southern California Bancorp (NASDAQ: BCAL) progresses towards completing its merger with California BanCorp, investors are considering the financial health and future prospects of the company. According to InvestingPro data, BCAL has a market capitalization of $258.82 million and a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 11.55, which slightly adjusts to 11.25 on a last twelve months basis as of Q1 2024. This suggests a reasonable valuation compared to earnings. Additionally, the company has demonstrated a solid operating income margin of 36.49% over the last twelve months, indicating efficient management and profitability.
One of the InvestingPro Tips for BCAL notes that analysts predict the company will be profitable this year, which aligns with the company's recent performance of being profitable over the last twelve months. Furthermore, while the company does not pay a dividend, this could be indicative of a strategy to reinvest earnings into growth and operations, especially pertinent in light of the upcoming merger.
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Investors will also be looking ahead to the next earnings date scheduled for July 29, 2024, which could provide further clarity on the company's financial trajectory post-merger. With a fair value estimation by analysts at $18.25 and an InvestingPro fair value of $14.89, the stock's current price of $13.97 may present an opportunity for investors considering the long-term growth potential of the merged entity.
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