Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in Bank of America Corporation $BAC

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 79,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,126,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Bank of America during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,022,000. Strive Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 160.1% in the 2nd quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC now owns 10,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $597,000 after purchasing an additional 6,446 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,547,000. Pure Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Bank of America by 4.4% during the second quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 40,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,290,000 after purchasing an additional 1,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Bank of America during the second quarter valued at approximately $117,000. 70.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of America Price Performance

Shares of BAC opened at $62.38 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $436.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.17. Bank of America Corporation has a twelve month low of $46.12 and a twelve month high of $65.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The company has a 50 day moving average of $61.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.92.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.08. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%.The business had revenue of $31.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BAC shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Oppenheimer downgraded Bank of America from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Argus set a $70.00 price target on Bank of America in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Bank of America from $62.50 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore set a $63.00 price objective on Bank of America and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Bank of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.08.

Key Stories Impacting Bank of America

Here are the key news stories impacting Bank of America this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s artificial-intelligence initiatives and branch expansion are expected to improve operating efficiency and customer service. The potential for productivity gains supports the long-term earnings case, although elevated expenses remain a risk. Should You Buy BAC Stock as AI-Led Branch Expansion Boosts Efficiency?
• Positive Sentiment: Strong inflows into gold and cryptocurrency funds reported by BofA suggest elevated client demand for investment products. That activity could benefit the bank’s wealth-management, brokerage and trading businesses, though the impact on BAC’s earnings is indirect.
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America disclosed holdings of approximately 4.69% and 5.87% in QIAGEN, reflecting regulatory notifications about its investment position. The disclosures may attract attention but do not materially change BAC’s core banking outlook. Bank of America Discloses 5.87% Stake in QIAGEN
• Neutral Sentiment: BofA strategists warned that global equities could face an autumn “reality check” tied to the U.S. midterm elections and geopolitical developments. A market pullback could weigh on BAC through lower investment-banking, asset-management and trading activity. Bank of America Warns of an Autumn Reality Check
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan is hiring senior technology dealmaker David Fishman from Bank of America. Losing an experienced M&A executive could weaken BAC’s technology investment-banking franchise and adds to competitive pressure. JPMorgan Hiring Bank of America’s David Fishman
• Negative Sentiment: The SEC is reportedly investigating margin lending to hedge fund Situational Awareness after a 67% drawdown, with Bank of America among the subpoenaed banks. Potential legal, credit and reputational risks could pressure sentiment. SEC Probe Puts Wall Street Leverage Risk Back in Focus
• Negative Sentiment: BAC is challenging proposed changes to the Federal Reserve’s global systemically important bank capital surcharge. Higher capital requirements could constrain lending, reduce balance-sheet flexibility and pressure returns on equity. Bank of America Joins Clash Over Fed GSIB Capital Rule

About Bank of America

Bank of America Corporation is a multinational financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides a broad array of banking, investment, asset management and related financial and risk management products and services to individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses, large corporations, governments and institutional investors. The firm operates through consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking and markets businesses, offering capabilities across lending, deposits, payments, advisory and capital markets.

Its consumer-facing offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans, credit cards and small business banking, supported by a nationwide branch network and digital channels.