UPDATE: D.A. Davidson Reiterates Buy Rating, Raises PT on Pacific Premier Bancorp Following First Associations Bank/San Diego Trust Acquisitions

In a report published Wednesday, D.A. Davidson analyst Gary P. Tenner reiterated a Buy rating on Pacific Premier Bancorp PPBI, and raised the price target from $15.00 to $16.00. In the report, D.A. Davidson noted, “The acquisitions of First Associations Bank (closed March 15th) and San Diego Trust (closed June 25th) provide PPBI with a good source of low cost deposits to fund asset growth. With improved late quarter loan generation we think PPBI's NIM is poised to rebound in the second half through an improved earning asset mix and the ability to further push down funding costs within the legacy portfolio. As PPBI continues to build out its new business lines we remain encouraged by the company's improvements on the liability side and strong asset quality. We are increasing our price target on PPBI shares from $15 to $16, or 14x 2014 EPS, in line with the average P/E multiple among our small-cap bank list. Pacific Premier reported 2Q13 GAAP/Core EPS of ($0.02)/$0.15, compared to our estimate of $0.14/$0.25. Core estimates exclude $1.07 million of investment securities gains related to the FAB investment portfolio and $5.0 million of pre-tax merger and integration expenses. Greater than anticipated NIM compression in the quarter was the primary variance versus our core EPS estimate.” Pacific Premier Bancorp closed on Tuesday at $13.68.