Bank of America Corporation $BAC Stock Acquired by Avity Investment Management Inc.

Avity Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) by 452.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 159,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 130,689 shares during the period. Avity Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Bank of America were worth $8,686,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Bank of America during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,571,060,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Bank of America in the second quarter worth $2,359,172,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter worth $2,313,953,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its position in shares of Bank of America by 914.5% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 25,095,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,380,239,000 after purchasing an additional 22,621,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Bank of America during the second quarter valued at $939,807,000. 70.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bank of America News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect higher net interest income and solid trading performance to support third-quarter results. A recent analysis also argues that a Federal Reserve policy shift could create additional NII upside for Bank of America. Bank of America: Fed Policy Shift Creates NII Upside
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen began coverage with a $60 price target, implying potential upside from recent trading levels, although it assigned a Hold rating. TD Cowen coverage of Bank of America
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America’s continued use of artificial intelligence to personalize customer service and improve operating efficiency could provide longer-term competitive benefits. How Bank of America is using AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street’s third-quarter estimates point to a mixed report: stronger NII and trading may be offset by weaker investment-banking fees and higher credit risks. Investors are focused on whether management can maintain earnings momentum as year-over-year EPS growth is expected to slow sharply from the prior period. BAC shares ahead of Q3 earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: The appointment of Jeff Crabtree as president of the Sarasota/Manatee region is a routine leadership change with limited near-term earnings impact. Bank of America names Jeff Crabtree president
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America agreed to a $39 million Merrill cash-sweep settlement, creating a modest legal and regulatory expense. Merrill cash sweep settlement
• Negative Sentiment: Chief equity strategist Michael Hartnett said investors are keeping substantial cash in money-market funds until sustained Fed rate cuts begin, signaling cautious risk appetite that could limit near-term support for bank shares. Investors need sustained Fed cuts

Bank of America Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE BAC traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $54.27. 28,734,400 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 37,220,086. Bank of America Corporation has a 52 week low of $46.12 and a 52 week high of $65.22. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $60.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $56.54. The company has a market cap of $379.49 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $31.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.78 billion. Bank of America had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 17.56%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Bank of America Corporation will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Bank of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This is a boost from Bank of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Bank of America’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on BAC. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Bank of America from $70.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Bank of America from $62.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Bank of America from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Bank of America from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded Bank of America from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Bank of America has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.22.

Bank of America Profile

Bank of America Corporation (NYSE:BAC) is a diversified financial services company serving individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. Its principal businesses include consumer banking, wealth and investment management, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and sales and trading.

Through its banking and financial services businesses, the company offers deposit accounts, credit cards, mortgages, home equity products, consumer and business loans, payment services, treasury management, brokerage services and investment advice.