Rep. Laurel M. Lee Sells Off Shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC)

Representative Laurel M. Lee (Republican-Florida) recently sold shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC). In a filing disclosed on October 16th, the Representative disclosed that they had sold between $50,001 and $100,000 in Bank of America stock on August 24th.

Bank of America Stock Performance

BAC traded up $0.23 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $50.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,458,445 shares, compared to its average volume of 37,666,465. Bank of America Corporation has a one year low of $46.12 and a one year high of $65.22. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market cap of $355.76 billion, a PE ratio of 12.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.21.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $29.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.58 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.15% and a net margin of 16.80%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.06 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were given a $0.32 dividend. This is a positive change from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Bank of America’s payout ratio is presently 30.40%.

Key Bank of America News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s lending franchise continues to expand: second-quarter average loans rose 8% year over year while deposits increased 2%. Net interest income grew 9%, suggesting that loan growth and funding economics remain supportive despite slower deposit growth. Bank of America deposit franchise article
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts view the stock as de-risked after the recent selloff, arguing that the expected $1.2 billion anti-money-laundering penalty and recent fee weakness may already be reflected in the valuation. Bank of America also received a Buy upgrade from JLPascual. Bank of America valuation article
• Positive Sentiment: A proposed overhaul of a federal drug-discount program could increase borrowing needs among hospitals, potentially benefiting banks that provide hospital credit lines, including Bank of America. The opportunity is speculative and depends on policy implementation. Federal drug program article
• Neutral Sentiment: Bank of America launched another investment-grade bond offering after an $8 billion capital raise, indicating continued access to funding markets but also adding to investor focus on capital costs and leverage. Bank of America bond sale article
• Neutral Sentiment: The bank disclosed or reported increased stakes in several companies, including Qiagen, ICU Giri?im Sermayesi and Link Bilgisayar. These appear to be investment or regulatory ownership disclosures rather than material changes to BAC’s core earnings outlook. Qiagen stake article
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with earnings of $1.08 per share versus a $1.10 consensus estimate and revenue of $29.96 billion versus $30.58 billion expected. The modest shortfall has reinforced concerns about fee income and operating momentum.
• Negative Sentiment: The reported $1.2 billion Treasury penalty tied to anti-money-laundering and sanctions-compliance violations has prompted multiple securities-fraud investigations and class-action notices. Although the law-firm announcements do not establish wrongdoing, they increase headline, litigation and reputational risk for BAC. Bank of America AML penalty investor alert
• Negative Sentiment: Bank shares broadly remain under pressure as Treasury yields rise and investors reassess rate-sensitive financial stocks, adding sector-wide selling pressure to BAC’s company-specific issues. Bank stock sector selloff article

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Bank of America from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bank of America in a report on Monday. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Bank of America from $62.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Evercore set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Bank of America in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Bank of America from $70.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.82.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bank of America

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bell Bank grew its holdings in Bank of America by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bell Bank now owns 20,770 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Capital Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Bank of America during the third quarter valued at $218,000. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 2.6% during the third quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,256,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares during the period. Carnegie Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in shares of Bank of America by 1.7% during the third quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 610,442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,710,000 after purchasing an additional 10,498 shares during the period. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Bank of America by 0.4% in the third quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 91,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,968,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.71% of the company’s stock.

About Representative Lee

Laurel Lee (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Florida’s 15th Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2023. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Lee (Republican Party) is running for re-election to the U.S. House to represent Florida’s 15th Congressional District. She declared candidacy for the 2026 election.

Laurel Lee earned undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Florida. Lee’s career experience includes working as an attorney with Carlton Fields, P.A., an assistant federal public defender and assistant U.S. attorney with the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, and a law clerk to James S. Moody on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida. Lee resigned on May 16, 2022.

Bank of America Company Profile

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It provides banking, lending, investment, payments and financial management services to consumers, businesses, institutional investors and governments.

The company’s consumer banking operations offer checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, home equity lending, auto loans and other consumer financial products. Through Merrill, Bank of America provides wealth management, investment advisory, brokerage and retirement services.