Pacific Western Bank shares have plunged down nearly 53% after an hour of trading on Wednesday after a report that the bank is exploring strategic, including a potential sale. The regional bank has been weighing options, including a breakup or a capital raise, according to a report by Bloomberg.
Pacific Western Bank does not have many serious buyers interested in the whole company, as per the report.
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The West Coast regional banks’ stocks have tumbled particularly since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in March this year as their customer basis are similar. Pacific Western Bank has it branches in California, Durham, North Carolina and Denver, Colorado.
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The Pacific Western Bank has a estimated market cap of $750 million. The Los Angeles-based bank has slumped nearly 72% this year.
On Wednesday’s regular session, the Los Angeles-based bank’s shared slipped 2% and recorded their fifth straight losing day.
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Other regional banks also declined in extended trading session following the report, with SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF falling 4.4%, Western Alliance Bancorp losing 29%, Comerica sliding 11% and KeyCorp falling 6%.
In the first quarter as of March 31, Pacific Western’s total deposits fell $5 billion to $28.2 billion. However, the bank says a net gain of $1.1 billion in deposits from March 20 until quarter end.
The company also reported a growth of $700 million in deposits from March 31 though April 24.
By finding a solution that bolsters its finances, PacWest hopes to avoid the fate of other regional banks that were taken over in the last two months by US regulators, according to a Reuters report. Recently, the regulators seized the First Republic bank and sold it to JPMorgan Chase.
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Major banks and private equity firms are hesitant at offering capital infusions to regional lenders without a government support because of concerns about booking losses on their low-yielding assets like loans and investment portfolios.
