Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) Stock Price Up 0.2% on Analyst Upgrade

Bank of America Co. (NYSE:BAC)’s share price was up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Oppenheimer raised their price target on the stock from $48.00 to $49.00. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Bank of America traded as high as $39.54 and last traded at $39.28. Approximately 6,327,327 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 39,061,266 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.22.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on BAC. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Bank of America from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Piper Sandler Companies upgraded Bank of America from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $37.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target (up previously from $46.00) on shares of Bank of America in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Bank of America from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded Bank of America from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $37.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Lindsay D. Hans sold 10,901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.91, for a total value of $402,355.91. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,907 shares in the company, valued at $402,577.37. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Bank of America news, insider Lindsay D. Hans sold 10,901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.91, for a total transaction of $402,355.91. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,907 shares in the company, valued at $402,577.37. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Bernard A. Mensah sold 92,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.80, for a total value of $3,661,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 96,082 shares in the company, valued at $3,824,063.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,650,481 shares of company stock worth $6,050,547,676 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of BAC. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 402.2% during the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bank of America by 839.0% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 646 shares during the period. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Livelsberger Financial Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

Bank of America Stock Up 0.0 %

The firm has a market cap of $306.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $39.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $25.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.22 billion. Bank of America had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The firm’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Bank of America Co. will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th were given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. This is an increase from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.99%.

Bank of America announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, July 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $25.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Bank of America

Bank of America Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services for individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses, institutional investors, large corporations, and governments worldwide. It operates in four segments: Consumer Banking, Global Wealth & Investment Management (GWIM), Global Banking, and Global Markets.